If you have a cybernetic or bioware limb or implant removed, you regain the essence that you lost, as long as you succeed at a Body+Willpower (essence cost of implantx3, 1 week) extended test.

COST TO REMOVE IMPLANTS/LIMBS
Limb(fore arm, lower leg): 5,000 Y
Limb (Full arm or leg): 10,000 Y
Torso: Cannot be removed, but can be replaced with a different torso (Ex: Replace alphaware torso with betaware torso)
Skull: Cannot be removed, but can be replaced with different skull

Implants
Obtrusive Scale: These are sometimes Game Master Calls even if they take up the limited amount of essence (removing bone lacing, for example, costs more than removing a grapple gun)

Unobtrusive Implant: .1-.5 essence cost: 10,000 Y
Mildly Obtrusive Implant: .6-1 essence cost, 15,000 Y
Somewhat Obtrusive Implant: 1.1-1.5 essence cost: 20,000 Y
Obtrusive Implant: 1.6-2 essence cost: 25,000 Y
Very Obtrusive Implant: 2.1-2.5 essence cost: 30,000 Y
Extremely Obtrusive Implant: 2.6-3 essence cost: 35,000 Y
Incredibly obtrusive Implant: 3.1-3.5 essence cost: 40,000 Y
Extraordinarily obtrusive implant: 3.6-4 essence cost: 45,000 Y
Insanely Obtrusive Implant: 4.1-5 Essence Cost: 50,000 Y
Ungodly Intrusive Implant: 5.1-5.9 Essence Cost: 55,000 Y

Hard to Remove (GM call): x1.5-x3
Bioware: x2

Upgrading Cyberware/Bioware: To upgrade cyberware/bioware, pay the difference between the two levels in Essence and Nuyen.
For example, If a character wants to upgrade his Muscle Augmentation from 3 to four, he spends .2 essence and pays 7,000 Nuyen. Also, Upgrading ware costs the difference between the two prices. For example, suppose a character wants to upgrade his Betaware arm to a Deltaware arm. He pays the difference in the prices (in this case, 90,000 Nuyen.) and regains the essence (after retraining) until the difference between the Betaware cost and the Deltaware cost is the same. So our example character then makes a Body+Willpower Extended test with a threshhold of

Explanation: Regaining essence: I didn't want to screw the characters who bought cyberware and/or bioware at the beginning of the game, so they can rehabilitate and get a better implant. For example, after saving up, a character with wired reflexes gets them removed, and then later after full rehabilitation can buy Synaptic Booster instead.


How's it look?

I like it quite a bit, and this will likely be my mechanic until something canon comes out and my players start whining to use that, instead.

Honestly, just go with the "essence hole". It's not really that much of a penalty because they can fill the hole. So if they go from Wired Reflexes 2 (3 ess) to Alpha Wired Reflexes 2 (2.4 ess) they have an additional .6 ess to fill up with whatever they want at no further essence loss. It's just filling the hole.

<edit> don't you already pay the difference in upgrade costs as opposed to buying a whole new system, save if you change grades (alpha to beta, etc)

I didn't know if there were canon rules for upgrading cybernetics and bioware, so I went with what made the most sense.