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Hi, I’m new to the Civic forums and car ownership in general. My mom gave me her used 2006 Honda Civic after I got my driver’s license this year. She’s totally clueless about cars, even more so than me. My dad knows a bit more, but he is kinda lazy with maintenance and never told me anything about cars. Idk if it’s because I’m female or he just doesn’t feel like explaining or what. If either of them caught me messing around under the hood of a car, they would automatically think I had broken the engine or something and they would be really freaked out.

Anyway, when I got the Civic I decided to take a look anyway. I made sure the people at the shop were ACTUALLY changing the oil (it was still light brown after a recent oil change, so they were) and looked at the coolant overflow bottle/reservoir. It was totally empty, which is kinda worrying because there’s a “max” and “min” line but literally nothing is in there. I heard there should be less in there when the engine was cold ((and yes, it was cold when I checked)) but there was no liquid. Yet I’ve never noticed any issues when actually driving the car, and I’ve been driving it for more than a year since I got my learner’s permit. The temperature gauge on the dashboard never goes above the middle.

So I have a few newbie questions about coolant, and about what I should do with my weird situation…

1. Will anything bad happen if I just leave it alone? I mean, I was always the kid who took toys apart and didn’t know how to put them back together. I don’t want to make things worse by using the wrong type of coolant. So, if I leave the car alone with no coolant in the reservoir, will it eventually start overheating or break in some other way? I don’t want my parents to get pissed and possibly stop letting me drive the car ((the title isn’t officially in my name, so even though they say it’s mine, it’s not.)) But I also don’t want to cause them huge repair bills if something does go wrong.

2. What kinds of coolant are okay for a new-ish Honda? I heard somewhere that if it’s newer than the year 2000 or so, you have to use special Honda brand coolant. All I have in my garage are Peak Long-Life coolant and Prestone Low-Tox coolant. I know the Peak is pre-mixed with water already, and I think the Prestone is too. Would either of those work?

3. Can you mix old and new coolant? If yes, does it matter if they’re different colors? ((I have no clue what was in the system before, and like I mentioned earlier, I can’t really ask my parents. For some reason I didn’t think to take off the actual radiator cap the last time I was alone with the car, but I will do that soon to see what color the old stuff is, and how much of it is left.))

4. How do you drain all the coolant? I’m not sure if I would be able to do this ((how would I get rid of it afterward?)) but I’m wondering where the bolt/valve/whatever that drains it is.

Okay, that’s all the random questions I can think of for now. Thank you

 
Rep Power: 519

If it was a true emergency, you could use pond water if you had to. But it isn't an emergency yet.


There are maybe 10-20 different formulations for OE coolant on the market nowadays. You will have a hard time telling the difference between many of the choices, and almost all of the wannabees will tell you they are perfect for your car.
There is no one-size-fits-all. You can't tell anything about the composition by the colors.

Factory coolant is long life, conventional ethylene-glycol, non-silicate, non-borate formula. Factory is blue colored. Factory Type-2 is pre-mixed with deionized water, so you can just pour it right in.

It protects the water pump seals and bearings.
It protects the nylon/plastic used in the engine and radiator.

The wrong coolants may not be 100% compatible with the seals and plastics used in the cooling system. Why chance it?

Go to a dealer and pick up a gallon of the correct coolant (Type 2). Maybe two gallons so you will have some for later. (Seems like the reservoirs need to be topped off at every oil change on about half of the cars I see.)

A drain and fill of the cooling system is simply draining the radiator (there is a draincock at the bottom of it)



Something like this, all are similar in design. Unscrew it to open the drain. Don't unscrew it all the way out or it will go everywhere.

Then refilling the system and topping off the reservoir.


After doing this...
Run the engine for a while until the thermostat opens, shut it off and let it cool, recheck at the radiator cap to make sure the radiator itself is full to the top. Top off the reservoir too if necessary.

Draining the radiator will get about half of the old coolant out, which is fine. That replenishes the necessary additives for protection.
That's about one gallon by the time you fill the reservoir.


Dispose of the old coolant properly. Put it back in the empty jug and take it to your local AutoZone. Or dealer where you got the coolant.

Read your owners manual. It should explain when to change coolant, the next interval is probably sooner than the first because you can't drain every last bit of it out.
At 6 years old, it is due if it has never been done.

HTH

 
Rep Power: 189

Coolants such as Peak Global Lifetime (not "Long Life" necessarily) and Zerex asian vehicle are 100% compatible with your vehicle, and as such are silicate free. Genuine Honda coolant maybe more expensive than Peak or Zerex.
You can save money by buying P.G.L. in 100% concentration form and then buying a gallon of distilled water at the grocery store and mixing 50% (1/1) ratio