I spoke to the mechanic this morning and he told me that the ECU that is presently in the car is the wrong one. he says that after everything he checked that and the ECU in there is for a model that is 2 years newer.

as crazy as that sounds,
which if it were true i dont want to point at anyone but the only thing that would make sense is that the mechanic who had worked on the car before switched it out,(he was pretty confident in telling me that the computer was the problem when i brought the car back to him originally)i really dont know !! but i want to check what is in there against the sr#number of what should be in there.

do you know how i could go about getting the correct ECU sr#? an internet link? im in costa rica, i will try to call some dealers in the states and see if they will help me.

the vin# for the car is jm1bf2329jo153543

from what i understand that for the same year and model there is different ECU.s . concerning were the car was manufactured, climate, etc.
and that it isnt one computer for each model for the year it was manufactured.

any help you can offer me in getting the correct ECU#, you guys have been an incredible help already.

thanks jhonsmazda

 

I do not know how to look up the proper part #'s for the ECU on your car. Someone like babyhuey can help on this one.

On a side note I looked up your VIN and it came back with 18 records, Although I don't know what they are. I looked it up on CARFAX.com which you must pay to see the results. So your car must have come from the USA originally.

One other thing on your VIN, there is no lower case or upper case "o"'s , it is a zero "0".
EX. JM1BF2329J0153543

 

thanks bkey

i called the dealer and they gave me a part # b6b218880a for a california mazda
and b6b118880b for a federal mazda
and a car manufacture date of 11.24.87
is that the only ID number needed to match it up?

now i would like to locate a used one(what would you recomend about that rebuilt/aftermarket/used?) from a reliable place that will dhl it to me.

also on carfax you said that 18records came up? records about? should i pay to retreive them?

thanks for all of and any more help you can offer

 

All I can recommend about locating a ECU is to lookup salvage yards on Google. I have several yards where I live but I would have to go through the junk cars to find one locally. Being where you live I don't know all your options. I would have no problems myself purchasing a good used unit with a warranty.

As for carfax records , they do not indicate whether good or bad. You must pay to get the details of the 18 records. It's your option whther or not to pay to see the records.

 

Wow what a neat discussion and I seemed to have missed seeing the entire thing untill last night.[:@]. Would certainly agree on checking the fuel pressure regulator diaphram for rupturing as this is somewhat more common on older Mazda's. Would suspect it to be source of fuel consumption and black smoke before ECU. The dealer you called was incorrect on not having a pressure regulator. Perhaps they thought you had the carbureted model. Part number for pressure regulator is OE#B630-13-280B. Those are zero's and not letter "O". MSRP of $164.30 but online for $131.44.

How has this mechanic determined that the ECU on your car is for newer model???
There should be somewhat of a part number on the top. Will end in 18-880 but first four should be something like B6B1 or B6B2. If they are lettered B61K-, BP01-, or BP47 then would be an ECU for 89-90 model year. B6K1 and B6K2 would be later 88 ECU. Connectors look the same so would probably plug right in. What is the lettering on your ECU?

Parts computer does not differentiate between Fed or California emissions unfortunately. Your 323 was originally wholesaled by Pinacle Mazda in Renton, Washington State so would doubt that it is a California emission spec vehicle. If you still have underhood emission sticker then look at it. This is the stiker that gives idle speed and timing specs. At the bottom should be a phrase that begins " This vehicle conforms to all...blah, blah, blah... applicable to 1988 model year. If the word California is in there then is a Cali spec vehcile. If not then is Federal and would probably say US EPA. Hope is Fed as the CA ECU is no longer available at least thru Mazda. There are still two Fed spec remaned ECU's still available in the Irvine, CA warehouse. Part number is changed to B6B1-18-881R. Available thru onlinemazdaparts.com for $466.40 and a $200 core charge.
There are a couple of places that sell online aftermarket, used, ?? First one below did show that they carried a B6B1 for 88 323. Second did not.

http://www.ourecms.com/main.htm

http://www.foreignecurepair.com/

Would definitely want to make sure that indeed the incorrect ECU has been installed. Perhaps the mechanic shorted something out when testing and burned up your original?? There was a mid year production change for the ECU on 09-01-1988. Since your 323 was in fact buit 11-24-87, You would need the earlier ECU which the dealer did give you correct part numbers for. Later model 88 used either a B6K1-18-880 or B6K2-18-880.

Hope this helps if a little late.

 

HI bhuey.

well i finally got the new ECU sent via dhl which in the end with duty cost more than double the ecu price, and guess what! with it in the car, it sends no gas? im coming to new york this week and am having a new fuel pressure regulator sent so i can bring it back, just in case!! and since the ecu is used they are going to switch it out for a different one, i will stop by the car before i leave hoping the sticker is still there and take a look and see what it says. if i need to order a different ecu ill do that to.

?so your saying that it wouldnt matter if it was a fed or california ecu? if the car is a fed spec or california spec either one should work in the car?
but if it is a washington state emissions car it will be different to the california spec and the fed spec. im just trying to clarify.

like i said the car runs good, it eats fuel though. the mechanic could be wrong, im getting the fuel pressure regulator and am hoping with one or the other it will finally be allright, is there any way to look up through the Vin#jmibf2329jo153543 what the emmisions specs are? thanks for any info you can give me.

thanks alot you guys!!! jhon

 

the vin # i left is incorrect, if anyone can help get the emissions specs(what state or fed)
its JM1BF2329J0153543

thanks jhonsmazda