well, sfbarry, maybe here's some good news, by example anyway... eVIPs and miles+copay come out of the save inventory ('C' for biz, 'A' for first). Last year I was PLT like you, also flying from SFO, and was able to use miles to upgrade from discount econ to 'C' 8 times out of 8 requests, and most requests were made within 2 weeks of departure, a few times only a few days ahead. total 16 of 16 segments.
This year, I've used eVIPs 6 times as EXP, and been upgraded 6 times so far (total 12 of 12 segments), also discount econ to 'C'. At least once, it was with only 24 hrs notice.
So if my experience is any guide, you should be able to use your eVIPs readily.
p.s. sfbarry, i've been waitlisted most times, and didn't play any tricky tricks with refundable parallel reservation.