got some questions
 

i'm trying to figure out what direction i'm going with my truck. got the interior and suspension fixed, now i'm heading for the engine. deq is closing shop in washington and that puts some options on the table.

i don't like not being in control of my engine/transmission. i'm thinking about going carbed or standalone injection like holley. i'm thinking of leaving the stock ecm in place and simply disconnecting the injectors and distributor. leave all the sensors in place and connected.

my only concern is the transmission. i'm assuming it needs input from the tps, which i can rig up. i wouldn't think the injectors or distributor would have anything to do with it. timing and fuel will be under my control, but am i missing something the tranny needs?

i doubt i'll ditch injection, but i want to get away from the proprietary crap. basically i'm trying to go from windows/apple to android/linux lol.

https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/dodgefo...e80a23b906.jpg
i'm ok with this... i'll just pull the bulb.

Using the stock PCM won't work not only will the truck act up, but a lot of other things will not work. The only way I know to do what you want is to get rid of the PCM completely and use a standalone tranny and engine control module. You would also have to replace your gauges. I might be wrong so don't take my word as gold. I do know the PCM uses injector pulse to activate the fuel pump if you unplug them the fuel pump won't run.

Correct.

The PCM NEEDS to know what the engine is doing, so it can tell the trans what to do. So far as I know, there ISN'T a stand-alone controller for the trans.

So in all honesty, what kind of performance are you trying to achieve? There are some really sharp guys on here that can probably help achieve them without reinventing the wheel. It may be easier and more cost effective. If you really want a carb or stand alone EFI go for it. I'm sure they'll help you figure that out too. How much time and patience do you have to iron out driveability problems?

Really surprised the system is THAT interdependent. I figured if I left the sensors in place and simply disconnected the injectors it would work. Might not like being unable to adjust the fuel, but figured it would just set a code and continue on with life. I figured spark would be the problem since it's also the cam position sensor. Not entirely sure how that would affect the system since I would no longer rely on the stock system for injector timing. I know fuel pumps generally use the signal from the distributor/cam sensor as a source of power for the fuel pump, but they also get signal from the oil pressure sensor for redundancy on many systems.

You can probably get EQ heads, a cam, a bigger throttle body, and a custom tune to bring it all together. That's why I asked what your goal for the engine is.

My goal is to be in control of my truck. Sct has already obsoleted our rigs, they no longer make a compatible tuner. There are some new ones left and old ones can be unlocked, but how much support will there be 10 years from now. Right now is kinda the ass end of support for this rig. The v10 has been obsolete for a bit longer, how much support do they have these days? I simply want to change, what I want to change, when I want to change it.

Megasquirt! You still will need to address the trans because it won't control it. Swap in a A500.

http://www.msextra.com/

the tranny and stock gauge cluster are really all i'm trying to save. i'd go with a 46rh since there's a standalone controller for it, but the one i have now works great.

has anyone tried to make a standalone controller for the re? is there some voodoo reason it don't have aftermarket support there?

i know some engineers that are retired looking for projects. they used to design HP printers for the last 30+ years. not sure if i could convince them to try it, they don't seem to have much interest in working on cars. would there be much interest and what would be the price point on something like that? quick look at 4l80 controllers is between $450 for microsquirt and $1300 for the gm performance. where would the shut up and take my money price land? no idea if they will even be interested, but i like to have as much info as possible... i'm the favorite son in law to one of them, but i still get the idiot look from time to time.