Honda Car Forum

Howdies.

I'm gonna do a radiator flush. I don't have any idea how many gallons
of antifreeze to buy for my 89 Civic to get a 50/50 mix. Does anyone
have an idea?

Also, Honda antifreeze is kinda pricey; any reason to stick with that or
would something else (what?) be OK?

Thanks,

Kahuna

What kind of Civic? DX, LX, Si? Wagon?

For manual transmission (which I saw elsewhere you have), it varies from 4.8
quarts to 5.8 quarts, depending on the above, and according to Chilton's.

The owner's manual should list capacities, too. www.autozone.com might also list
the Chilton's manual capacities for your Honda. Click on repair guides at the
autozone site, and follow the pointers.

OEM anti-freeze is the safest bet.

Some here claim that green Prestone and the engine cooling system's materials
don't have good chemistry. My experience with a couple of prematurely failing
water pumps supports this, though this is not proof positive.

Some of us here have been experimenting with something called "Dex" for short.
It's orange instead of green. It is claimed by the maker to be far superior to
green Prestone and appropriate for Honda engines. I switched to the orange Dex
1.75 years ago, but only after a thorough flush (like nine fills, warm up the
car, and drains). I bought specifically Havoline's orange Dex. I think I'm going
to leave it in for three years, though I was originally planning for only two.


"Big Kahuna" <none@nothanks.com> wrote
> I'm gonna do a radiator flush. I don't have any idea how many gallons
> of antifreeze to buy for my 89 Civic to get a 50/50 mix. Does anyone
> have an idea?
>
> Also, Honda antifreeze is kinda pricey; any reason to stick with that or
> would something else (what?) be OK?

In article <MhVLc.11974$Qu5.2465@newsread2.news.pas.earthlink .net>,
"Caroline" <caroline10027remove@earthlink.net> wrote:

> What kind of Civic? DX, LX, Si? Wagon?

Civic LX manual.


> For manual transmission (which I saw elsewhere you have), it varies from 4.8
> quarts to 5.8 quarts, depending on the above, and according to Chilton's.
>
> The owner's manual should list capacities, too. www.autozone.com might also
> list
> the Chilton's manual capacities for your Honda.

Hmmm, something wrong here as they say I need 3/4 gallons for a 50/50
mix. Er, that's 12 to 16 quarts so something is really off here....

I'll keep looking around on the web....

Tks.

On 7/22/04 5:18 PM, in article none-A282C4.15181822072004@news.stanford.edu,
"Big Kahuna" <none@nothanks.com> wrote:

> In article <MhVLc.11974$Qu5.2465@newsread2.news.pas.earthlink .net>,
> "Caroline" <caroline10027remove@earthlink.net> wrote:
>
>> What kind of Civic? DX, LX, Si? Wagon?
>
> Civic LX manual.
>
>
>> For manual transmission (which I saw elsewhere you have), it varies from 4.8
>> quarts to 5.8 quarts, depending on the above, and according to Chilton's.
>>
>> The owner's manual should list capacities, too. www.autozone.com might also
>> list
>> the Chilton's manual capacities for your Honda.
>
> Hmmm, something wrong here as they say I need 3/4 gallons for a 50/50
> mix. Er, that's 12 to 16 quarts so something is really off here....
>
> I'll keep looking around on the web....
>
> Tks.


You definitely do not need 3 or 4 gallons. More like 3/4ths of a gallon.
Call your local Honda parts counter and just ask them. They will know the
right answer off the top of their heads. They sell this stuff every day.
Btw - the new Honda anti-freeze comes pre-mixed to 50/50.

On Thu, 22 Jul 2004 12:08:39 -0700, Big Kahuna <none@nothanks.com> wrote:

>Howdies.
>
>I'm gonna do a radiator flush. I don't have any idea how many gallons
>of antifreeze to buy for my 89 Civic to get a 50/50 mix. Does anyone
>have an idea?

The current Honda Type 2 coolant is premixed to 50/50 in the jug. I've no
idea about quantity for your car but it's always better to be on the safe
side and buy extra.

>Also, Honda antifreeze is kinda pricey; any reason to stick with that or
>would something else (what?) be OK?

Use the Honda stuff - it is known to work and some others are *known* to
wreck water pumps and consequently timing belts and depending on your luck,
maybe the whole engine.

Rgds, George Macdonald

"Just because they're paranoid doesn't mean you're not psychotic" - Who, me??

"Big Kahuna" <none@nothanks.com> wrote in
> "Caroline" <caroline10027remove@earthlink.net> wrote:
>
> > What kind of Civic? DX, LX, Si? Wagon?
>
> Civic LX manual.

4.8 quarts.

(Note: I see small discrepancies between Chilton's and the owner's manual for my
91 Civic on this point. Something about not taking into account the reservoir or
what stays in the engine block... )

> > For manual transmission (which I saw elsewhere you have), it varies from 4.8
> > quarts to 5.8 quarts, depending on the above, and according to Chilton's.
> >
> > The owner's manual should list capacities, too. www.autozone.com might also
> > list
> > the Chilton's manual capacities for your Honda.
>
> Hmmm, something wrong here as they say I need 3/4 gallons for a 50/50
> mix. Er, that's 12 to 16 quarts so something is really off here....

How do you figure?

3/4 gallon = 3 quarts

3/4 gallon of undiluted anti-freeze + 3/4 gallon distilled water =
1.5 gallon of 50/50 anti-freeze =
six quarts of 50/50 anti-freeze.

(Note: Quart = QUARTer gallon)

> I'll keep looking around on the web....

http://www.honda.co.uk/owner/workshopmanuals2.html might also be helpful, though
not necessarily dead on.

Autozone is really wonderful with the free repair guides...

In article <b%0Mc.10697$mL5.8191@newsread1.news.pas.earthlink .net>,
"Caroline" <caroline10027remove@earthlink.net> wrote:

> > Hmmm, something wrong here as they say I need 3/4 gallons for a 50/50
> > mix. Er, that's 12 to 16 quarts so something is really off here....
>
> How do you figure?
>
> 3/4 gallon = 3 quarts
>
> 3/4 gallon of undiluted anti-freeze + 3/4 gallon distilled water =
> 1.5 gallon of 50/50 anti-freeze =
> six quarts of 50/50 anti-freeze.
>
> (Note: Quart = QUARTer gallon)
>
> > I'll keep looking around on the web....
>
> http://www.honda.co.uk/owner/workshopmanuals2.html might also be helpful,
> though
> not necessarily dead on.
>
> Autozone is really wonderful with the free repair guides...

Well, I was stumped by that "3/4" bit. I thought that meant 3 or 4. I
couldn't imagine that the capacity of the radiator is just over a
gallon?!? And since the HOnda stuff is pre-mixed at 50/50, I thought
"it's gotta take more than that!

Anyway, I'm about to give it up now cause I'd have to go get the Honda
stuff, then be uber careful not to spill that toxic crap, get some kind
of flush kit, dispose of the old fluid, be very careful putting the new
stuff in...add in all the flushing and tweaking and re-filling when the
thermostat opens and twitching around...I wimped out. I think I'll just
go to the dealer and pay my $50 and let them do it.

Thanks for all the advice!

--Wimpy Tom--