Folks,

New to this site and after posting to tech, I saw this .bbs on E.C.U's

I just spent over 780.00 on trying to get my check engine light to go out on my subj Civic. (I live in San Diego and I have to get it smogged). The final answer is "you have a bad computer" and to replace will cost 980.00. Well, if they ran diagnostics on it in the first place to correct a temperature Hi/Lo sensor and a transmission part (which makes the car run excellent now) how can that be. I found several on ebay and the web but sometimes the numbers do not match up.

I own a car made in Japan (I bought new in Guam), with a JHMED VIN...

it states on the computer:

37820-PM5-A550
601-139748
8 B
with a manufacture date of 87-12-24

Obviously, I am not a mechanic. Will others be compatabile? Do the numbers matter all of the way? I found a ECU that has

37820-PM5 but the rest is different.

Is this something I can just swap out myself?

I bought this car new in 1988, it has over 178,000 miles, it drove me to 5 ships and 5 shore stations and will be featured in my retirement ceremony after I get to 25 yrs in the Navy. Everyone hates it but I loove it. It is my baby blue car!

Happy Holidays!

Kevin, Senior Chief, Unitied States Navy

 

I believe as long as you get a PM5 ECU designed for the same type of car (IE manual/AT) you should be fine, and typically it's a disconnect the battery, unplug & remove old ECU, replug & install new ECU, reconnect battery, only hard part can be removing the plugs and locating the bugger

but I'm sure someone will be along to correct or confirm this

 

yeah just find one from the same year. 88 are different than the rest. and make sure you get the auto or manuel one, with the same engine should be a 1.5 dpfi model. the ecu is located under the carpet in the passenger footwell close to the firewall. it has a metal shild that need to be unbolted to remove it