So, I'm trying to buy a p28 ecu and an obd2b jumper harness. Just for clarification, this is not a pipe dreaming thread. I am in a position to buy an ecu tonight, I just want some clarification on exactly what I need to buy, and whether any of you have any suggestions. I was looking at this chipped p28: Advanced Ignition - ECU'S as you can see, it comes prechipped and includes a free personal base map. MY buddy who essentially built his hatch from the ground up told me that it would be a better idea to buy a virgin ecu and let him chip it himself. He isn't trying to charge me any money or anything just in case anyone was wondering if he was just playing me. Now, the question is what do you recommend I do? I trust my friend's judgement, but its proving difficult to find a virgin ecu. I don't know much about ecus but when I search, I find a lot of auto stuff, or d series sohc stuff. I don't know if any of that matters or not. Also, it's likely that if I buy a virgin ecu, I'll have to pay extra for a base map, whereas the chipped ecu comes with one from the seller. Any input it greatly appreciated. Once again. Not wishlisting.

 

1) it does not have to be a p28. it can be any 92-95 civic or integra ecu. once chipped, the ecu code doesnt matter. and a nonvtec ecu can easily be converted to vtec.
2) most companies offer warranties, and have done hundreds of ecus over the years and know what they're doing. having your friend do it offers no warranty, and the work he does could damage the ecu if he doesnt know exactly what he's doing and have experience doing them before
3) your question about the basemap is legit. a company can usually offer something, whereas it sounds like your friend can not.
4) when people come to me with a virgin ecu, I charge $50 to chip it, and if the engine setup is fairly basic I'll often do a free basemap, especially if I'm the one that will be tuning it. if the ecu needs repair, or conversion to vtec, that can range anything from $20-$60 extra. if the customer supplies the ecu, I do not warranty the ecu but I do warranty my work. if I supply the ecu to the customer, I warranty the whole package for 1 year.

food for thought

 

Okay. I appreciate the advice. I purchased the p28 I listed along with a jumper harness. Looking forward to eventually an s300 and a dyno tune.

 

thats a pretty good price for that ecu. you should look into getting a ZIF socket for it though, theirs dont have one. removing/installing the chip without a zif socket is a total pain, and can damage the chip's pins. also, it does not appear to have a datalogging port installed, you'll probably need to have that done as well.

also, that is a chipped ecu remember. to install an s300 unit in it you'll need to have the ecu modified again for that. not a big job, but will require a skilled installer

 

I will definitely look into that. And an s300 isn't in the near future but I will keep that in mind.