Honda blue coolant in '98 CRV with brass radiator?

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I bought the car used and the original aluminum radiator developed a gash in its plastic top, it got replaced with a brass radiator. Since then, I've always used Prestone ethylene glycol (the green stuff) in it. The coolant is now almost 3 years old. Today, I measured 0.45 volt across the coolant through the radiator and an engine ground which I gather is more than the threshold of 0.2 volt (Am I correct here?). Is the blue Honda coolant suitable for this car? I kinda like the 10 year/120,000 km time to change limit it has, according to the printed info that my newer 2 year old CRV has under the hood.
 
You may need something different than Honda fluid.

Your aluminum water jackets still need to be protected from corrosion now you have brass in the mix.

Maybe a universal coolant is now called for.
 
Honda blue is ethylene glycol and protects aluminum just fine. I recently opened a friend's R18 with 144k miles on its original Honda blue, and it was cleaner inside than my fine china.

Get the Type 2 (blue), and stop worrying.
wink.gif
 
There's an even better option for your situation. Shell Rotella ELC. It has the molybdate you need to protect your brass radiator, and is free of silicate.

http://www.napaonline.com/Catalog/Catalo...6021_0183298270

Quote:
Features and Benefits: Concentrated Formula. Extended Life Coolant / Antifreeze Is Fill For Life Carboxylate Based Coolant For Heavy Duty Diesel, Gasoline & Natural Gas Powered Engines. Contains Ethylene Glycol & Nitrite & Molybdate As Secondary Inhibitors.
Improves Water Pump Seal Life Due To Low Dissolved Solid Levels. Excellent Pitting Protection For Wet Sleeve Cylinder Liners. Long-Term Corrosion Protection Of All Cooling System Metals Including Aluminum, Brass, Cast Iron, Steel, Solder & Copper.
Excellent Heat Transfer, Reduced Hard Water Scale. Reduced Overall Coolant & Cooling Component Maintenance. Product Contains No Traditional SCA Additions & Contains No Silicate, Borate, Nitrate Or Phosphate.
Coolant Meets All The Requirements Of CAT EC-1, TMC RP 329 & RP 338.


I think we have a winner.
 
Rotella coolant is not available where I live. I went to Honda yesterday, but THEY DIDN'T HAVE THE BLUE COOLANT THERE! I asked the parts guy what they had,and he showed me a bottle of green-yellow genuine Honda coolant. The bottle was marked "Change in 40,000 km or 2 years." I surmised it was nothing but ordinary ethylene glycol. And it was available only in premixed form. So I did a radiator drain and refill twice, then added 2 liters of green Prestone Concentrated coolant and filled in the rest with distilled water. Today, I measured the coolant to engine ground potential and got 0.12 volt. It was .45 volt before I changed the coolant. Great!

I was curious, so I measured the voltage potential in my CRV with the blue coolant. It was 0.03 volt.
 
Last edited:
Originally Posted By: berniedd
Rotella coolant is not available where I live. I went to Honda yesterday, but THEY DIDN'T HAVE THE BLUE COOLANT THERE! I asked the parts guy what they had,and he showed me a bottle of green-yellow genuine Honda coolant. The bottle was marked "Change in 40,000 km or 2 years." I surmised it was nothing but ordinary ethylene glycol. And it was available only in premixed form. So I did a radiator drain and refill twice, then added 2 liters of green Prestone Concentrated coolant and filled in the rest with distilled water. Today, I measured the coolant to engine ground potential and got 0.12 volt. It was .45 volt before I changed the coolant. Great!

I was curious, so I measured the voltage potential in my CRV with the blue coolant. It was 0.03 volt.

All the coolants mentioned here are ethylene glycol, what makes them different is the additives used to prevent corrosion.
 
Go to any International dealer, and you'll find Rotella coolant. I just picked up 12 gallons today for the various vehicles. Nobody had it, except International.
 
Originally Posted By: DoubleWasp
Honda blue is ethylene glycol and protects aluminum just fine. I recently opened a friend's R18 with 144k miles on its original Honda blue, and it was cleaner inside than my fine china.

Get the Type 2 (blue), and stop worrying.
wink.gif



Just curious, if Honda blue coolant is ethylene glycol, how come the change interval is 10 years? Yet the ordinary green stuff (also ethylene glycol) has to be changed every 2-3 years. Does Honda have a secret ingredient that prolongs the life of their blue stuff?
 
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