I need an ECU!
 

Hi there, my SOHC in my DX is terminally ill and I am going to upgrade to the DOHC after Christmas. I am wondering if anybody has the ECU from a DOHC motor that would be willing to sell. I will also need the wiring harness as well. I am paying $750.00 for a Japanese 'take-out' motor. The motor has about 35,000 on it. The price includes shipping from Utah to NC. Do you guys think that is a good price? I had thought about going with the GTX because the motor is only $850 but, there is so much more I will need to buy in addition to the motor that I am just going to opt for the standard DOHC. The car is a daily driver and I don't have the time or space to turn it into a project car.

Just curious, but why do you have your lawn tractor listed in your signiture?

Umm, well, uh, it is a vehicle of sorts...I drive it up and down the street from time to time...:D

take a look at some of the posts here:

http://pub51.ezboard.com/funitedescortownersboardfrm7

you'd need the ecu from a 91-95 Escort GT.
i would avoid the ecu from the 96 GT - and maybe even late 95's?? - since it is OBDII...

I drive my mower too!!! My neighbor is a bit of a crazy ass like me and if we see eachother out mowing at the same time we race!!! Its a blast!! We either drag race or do a sort of "mower-X" as we call it, it grand fun!:D

:laugh:

Is that because this is an EGT board, or because those ECUs are any different?

I have a never used, although factory reconditioned, DOHC ECU. Stupid dealer told me that was what was wrong, so I got one through Mazda Motorsports, only to find ou it was just the plug wires (many, many years ago, before this internet thing led to a spread of info).

Have no idea what it's worth, though. I think I paid about $500 for it (the dealer wanted $1k). Braden wanted $250 for a JDM ECU.

If I were you, and have not yet bought the engine, I would consider another possibility.

One. Those engines rarely are under 35k miles. I bought mine from watanabe, and it had around 50k. If they say it's under 35, they're BS'ing ya.

Two. Regardless of miles, because the engine had been sitting there for a long time before you bought it, and if it really came over seas, you have to worry about rust and seals. (Rust prominently on the valves and valve seats.)

You have two options. You can buy that engine for $750, replace all the seals (crank, cam, valve stem), all gaskets (valve cover, water pump, oil pump, oil pan), and the timing belt.

Or...
You can pick up a long block from a u-pull it yard, have it blueprinted and rebuilt, possibly doing some of the assembly yourself, and then stick it in the car.

While you have the engine out, now is a good time to replace your engine mounts, clutch assembly, as well as to have your flywheel resurfaced. Doing all this will save you quite a headache down the road.

I bought my engine in Sept of last year, and now it's burning oil. I don't know if it's the rings or valve stem seals as I've been lazy and haven't done a wet/dry compression test. I was also rushed at the time I put the engine in and didn't have the time to check the engine myself or replace all the seals and gaskets.

So take the time or spend the money to do it right! :)

</rant>

Vary good point Bryan. :)

Bryan, basically I should get the motor, have it blueprinted and then put all new gaskets, rings, flywheel, etc.? Should I have it ported and polished too? I can see the long term value in this eventhough it means the car maybe down longer then I had originally anticipated...besides, I am going to drive the SOHC motor until she will go no more...It runs hot. I have checked all the usual suspects and have replaced the heater hoses and thermostat. I have either a warped head or a blown head gasket. I know from previous experience that even after I have the head machined that it can still smoke as evident on my 1983 Civic I did the gasket on. Other than the running hot problem the car runs great. Idles and accels smooth, no hesitation. I think it better to just replace the motor and then perhaps I can rebuild the SOHC for learning purposes. I like your idea of doing the blueprinting, etc. Could give me a nice return for a small amount of time and investment money.

Also, in defense of the import motors: I bought one for my '91 for $599 from some place out in Colorado and it was in great shape...all I did was change the timing belt. I do agree with you to some extent though because my friend bought one that had a few small problems...I guess basically it is luck of the draw. The nice thing is that I got a one year warranty with the motor and usually most of those places give you six or three months.

If I were in your shoes, I would find a yard and search for a DOHC longblock. You can find one in any Escort GT (91-97), Mercury Tracer LTS (I think), a Kia SUV I can't remember the name of, and of course our Proteges. You can also pick one out of a second gen Pro. You also can pick up an ECU, too, if someone else hasn't already pulled it. The ECU is under the heater core, in the center console. Along with the ECU, try to pull the wiring harness. If you can't pull it, or it's too much trouble, at least cut the connectors. You can use the existing wiring harnes. If you do use the DX wiring harness, you'll have to run a wire or two for the VICS system. It might be a good idea to sit there and soak in how things are with the DOHC (wiring, coolant hoses, vacuum lines, etc). Because you're swapping from a single to a dual cam engine, make sure everything is intact. There will be some components missing from a DX that the LX engine needs.

Find a local shop to blueprint and rebuild your new (old) engine. Don't go to any shop where you mainly see cars with big blocks sitting around outside. They don't work on 4-cylinders that often, and most likely don't have the tools sized to do the work. I've seen a number of tuner shops popping up with the equipment to blueprint, balance, and rebuild a block. Just do some shopping. :)
Tell them you want the block torn down, cleaned, the bottom blueprinted and balanced, the top checked and rebuilt if necessary. You made need some valve guides replaced, some valves replaced, or some springs. They should also check the camshaft bearing journals for wear. Usually the cars you pull things from at the yard tend to have suffered from oil starvation.

I don't know if you're strapped for cash, or if you can spend a few extra dollars. If you can spend some extra cash, you might also look for a Miata at the yards. What you want is the intake camshaft. Then, you can go to a Mazda dealer and order a set of 2001 Miata pistons. These two will help add a few ponies under the hood. Oh. On the pistons... They sell them in three oversized sets for rebuilding. So check with the mechanic to see what size pistons you need. There may only be the need to rehone the cylinders. Though, you can ask for a millimeter or two overbore. That will add a bit of displacement. :)

While this is being done, it would be a good idea to have the flywheel resurfaced. The same shop you take the engine to should be able to do it.

I don't know how much of a self-made mechanic you are, but if you have the knowledge and skills, you can do a lot of the assembly yourself and save yourself a couple hundred.

Also, as a side suggestion, you might think about replacing your alternator with a higher rated one. MazdaspeedWest has a howto for installing an alternator from a V6 MX-3. That's worth the trouble. You won't have to worry about adequate power incase you install a good stereo system. Along with the alternator, you might think about either rebuilding your power steering pump, or replacing it. Doing these two things while the engine is out will save trouble of having to replace them later on. Course, this is dependent upon whether you want to dish out the dough for it. At least take the time to see how much it would cost. An idea for the alternator, you can pull V6 alternator from the yard, and then take it to your local parts store for replacement. It will cost less than buying a new one. Then again, mayabe not depending on what the yard charges.

Okay. When you say longblock you are referring to what exactly? I could never get the distinction between a long and short block understood. If I read right, I can use a motor out of an escort, Kia or 2nd gen Pro? Is the displacement still 1.8?

I have the mechanical know how but, do not have the tools nor the space to work on such a large project. I am afraid I am going to have to pay for most everything to be done at a shop. Money is going to be an issue as well. I was not planning on spending more than $1300 for the motor and labor but, it may cost more if I decide to go your route. I am still interested in doing as much of it as possible though.

Longblock means the block and head. Shortblock means you only get the block with pistons and crank. Longblock is just short for a complete engine.

Well, that's why I suggested you go to a yard and pull the engine yourself. You'll prolly pay the yard $150 for the complete engine versus paying $750 for an engine. Paying to have the engine you pull from the yard rebuilt will be less than the $750. You'll prolly pay $750 or a bit less to have it blueprinted and balanced. Yet, you'll have an engine that will run better and last longer than that engine you could have bought for $750.

If you know a friend or a friend of the family that has a garage and a cherry picker (what you would use to lift and lower the engine), contact them and see if you can work out a deal to let you use the garage to install the new engine. Most places like to rape people for installing an engine. I called a place that said $2000 for installing a new engine even if I supplied the engine. I was like "WTF?!$@!%@#$" Oh well.

The Kia to use is the Spectra (IIRC), not the Sportage. The Sportage SUV uses the F-series block.

Have you actually priced rebuilding a Mazda engine? Will spent about $2300 rebuilding his. Not many shops specialize in them, as they rarely wear out, and when they do, they aren't worth rebuilding (when the car is worth $1500 and you can get a used JDM engine for $500 or so, why would you spend $2000 or more getting it rebuilt? Especially when that will get you into a BPT?) And rebuilt engines are about $2500-3000...more from Mazda (new).

And unless you swap the computer, there isn't much much to be had by uping compression or swapping cams. The guy who built his EGT with 11.0:1 pistons and cams only made 120 whp, which Braden has made with a WAI (actually, he doesn't have a VAF, he uses a MAP sensor) and his Haltech (computer).

Just IMHO.