I have just bought a theft recovred 96 Civic EX Coupe, well of course some **** is missing like the ECU but the 1.6 SOHC VTEC engine was never touched..

So to get this thing back on the road, I need an ECU...So my friend lent me an ECU from a 99 Civic EX which of course has the same engine..

But when I look at a 99 EX engine bay it seems a tad diffrent from mine...

So i just had to ask can I just use the 99 Civic EX ECU into my 96 EX?

Is it just plug and play or should I just get an ECU from the same year?

Are they different or the same ECU minus the year it was made in?

 

I ran into this myself.. the 96-98 is OBD2 (a) 99-00 is OBD2b (or 2.5, etc..) The difference is in the connectors and the wiring harness in the car.

The difference is that the 96-98 obd2a has the harness from the engine to the ecu all three plugs and the 99-00 has obd2b and has two plugs to the ecu and one cabin harness.

I can tell you the 99-00 has different connectors, but I am not sure you can or cannot adapt it to work for your 96-98.

BTW, check eBay, etc.. for a 96-98 ECU, I got one for $40 shipped..