Let me start from the beginning...

I drive a 1995 Del Sol VTEC with the original B16A3. It is pretty much all factory except for intake, exhaust, and it is running on a stock JDM P30. About a week ago I went to leave and identically killed it taking off, did not give it quite enough gas, **** happens. The problem is when I go to start the car again it just cranks and cranks, but no start.

I get around to looking into it and it has no spark. Not even at the spring on the coil that connects to the secondary winding. I check the resistance of the coil and it seems to check out, IIRC it was 7ohms for the primary and around 14k for the secondary (though according to this article it depends on the brand https://honda-tech.com/forums/honda-civic-del-sol-1992-2000-1/dizzy-coil-test-2624753/).

At this point I'm thinking when I killed the car I may have shorted IGP1 at the ecu (which supplies +12v to the coil and ICM) because I used it as a power source for a wideband a few weeks ago and the electrical tape I had on the exposed portion had come off, but I check the wire and it is still supplying 12v.

Next I take out the Ignition Control Module because autozone will test it for free. My buddy who was helping had a LS distributor he bought on craigslist so we decided to bring in and test his ICM also. His being for an LS (ICM JA179) and mine for b16a3 (ICM JP129), they were supposed to be tested on different settings on the tester, his JA179 passed using its respective test settings and mine failed using the JP129 settings, but thinking they were supposed to be interchangeable I tested my JP129 again using the JA179 method and it passed that test. I figure it would not pass all of the tests the machine put it through if it does not perform all of the necessary functions to run the car.

So my question is since they are interchangeable from what I've read, why do they specify for different tester settings?
Why does my ICM fail using the appropriate JP129 test but pass using the JA179 test?
Autozone's site claims they are not interchangable and at $95 the JP129 is nearly twice the price of the JA179. What is the real difference between the two? Has anyone here swapped out their ICM in a b16 for one of a different model?
I also tested the 3 position sensors in the dizzy and each had around 400ohms, which is within spec. I am just getting pissed off because of the 1000 car enthusiasts I know, the only answer I get any more is "replace the whole dizzy, it happens all the time" If no component of the dizzy is bad the dizzy must be good, I refuse to just swap **** out and I am at my witts end.
If I am lucky my dad may allow me to barrow the coil and ICM from his 95 LS auto, but he thinks I risk frying it and according to autozone they are different ICMs.

 

I forgot to add, I still thought I may have fried the ECU even though IGP1 had power so I put it in a buddys car and his car started up fine, so I'm saying the ECU is not the issue. Does anyone know how to test the distributor components more in depth? remove the coil and use a 12v battery to create spark etc..

 

You can't reliably test the icm at home, and even at places like Advance, they can test it, but don't rely on their test. It can test out good, but actually be bad. I had that happen before in fact.

The coil can be tested, but it can test out fine, but actually be bad. Again, happened before.

A bad coil can make an ICM go bad. For all I know, I had that happen.

The best solution is testing known good components to see if it remedies your issue.

And yes, you can use an LS ICM in your B16A3, or any B,D,F,H engine. Coils can swap also. You can even convert to use an external H/F series coil. Not suggesting it, just saying it can be made to work for sake of argument.