Anyone use this? I'm trying to determine if my car "should" has the factory fill of Type 2 in there. The reservoir is nearly empty but I can see down it with a flashlight and it's a darkish blue with a very very slight tinge of dark green (barely noticeable).

The coolant is up to the filler neck of the radiator. When I shine the flashlight into the filler neck of the radiator the color looks almost like the green standard coolant you see everywhere else but when you turn the light off it looks like a dark blue with a slight tinge of dark green. When I dip a Q-tip in there to get a sample the color is entirely blue on the white Q-tip. It's almost as if the color is supposed to change under light.

Is this normal? What's the color of the Type 2 Coolant supposed to be? Other than "blue"? Is it supposed to be "windshield washer fluid" blue?

Also I plan on refilling the reservoir soon after I do a radiator coolant change. Would air get in if the reservoir is almost empty? It's way down below the min line so it's definitely overdue. The way I understood this was when the car heats up the fluid expands and fills the reservoir and sucks back the same amount it put in when it cools down. So theoretically air should not have gotten in right? As long as it was parked on a level surface when it cools to the tip of the reservoir hose is always submerged in coolant?

 

is this for the 09 or the 95 accord?

 

The '09.

Also is there a reliable procedure to bleed the coolant? Everyone and their mother has their own way to do it. I really don't want to find out I messed up the bleeding when I'm overheating on the highway 15 miles from home. I've watched videos that said hold it at 2500RPM to bleed it out. I'm a little worried about doing this with the auto trans. in park. I've heard it's fine but you know...

Is that only to get it up to operating temps? Instead can I just let it idle until it gets hot enough?

Steps I jotted down:
1. Start car. Turn temperature to max heat. Turn off car. Am I understanding this correctly: We don't want it to actually blow hot air we're only doing this because setting it to heat opens up somewhere the coolant is supposed to flow? So the heater should not be blowing hot air, but the temperature dial should be in the red right?
2. Drain at radiator drain valve. Close valve.
3. Fill reservoir and radiator.
4. Put cap on half way.
5. Star car, let it idle until cooling fans spin twice. As this happens thermostat should open and coolant should drop as air bubbles burp. Why does coolant drop? How do we guarantee all air is leaving? Why does the air bubbles even more? Don't air bubbles stay above liquid with liquid passing underneath? How is air pushed? Someone said I even have to massage the lower rad hose and the upper. Is this necessary because the service manual makes no mention of this but at the same time I don't want to leave air bubbles in.
6. Top off as level drops. If I don't top it off fast enough does air get sucked back in? This isn't like bleeding brakes so I don't see why it should.
7. When fluid level at filler neck of radiator stays constant, top off both radiator and reservoir, tighten cap all the way. Take car out for a drive.
8. Park, check level and top it off.
9. The next morning when car is completely cool, monitor fluid levels, top off if necessary.

I plan on doing this on my driveway which is a mild incline. I heard this aids bleeding. How?

The only heel in my plan is I'm worried about what would happen if I were to leave an air bubble in. I can't really see it so I wouldn't know if it's there. Someone said if there's an air bubble somewhere the coolant won't get hot enough for you to see it on the temp gauge but that specific area where the air is trapped will get hot and you'll blow a head gasket. Ruh roh ! Is it really safe to run the car with cap on half way? I'm not worried about burning myself I know the system doesn't pressurize. I'm worried about whether engine can operate at temps with that off. Honda says to do this so I think it's safe. Am I right in thinking that the only difference between cap on and off is that if on it allows fluid to reach higher temperatures without boiling due to high pressurization? So theoretically at low temps such as engine operating temp there should be no difference between cap on and off right? It's at high temps over 200f where open goes to vapor and closed stays liquid?

 

When you fill the cooling system there's a few places where air bubbles can collect. When the engine is running, they get swept along & collect only a 1 or 2 high points.

The K-series engine (2003+) has it's thermostat at a lower elevation, so air bubbles don't tend to collect there. They only tend to collect at the radiator cap, so a bleeder valve at the thermostat (& strange procedure) isn't needed. A hill with the front of the car pointed uphill just makes it easier for air to make its way to the radiator cap.

If you leave the cap open, some water will evaporate out the radiator neck, pretty well-behaved when the engine is idling. If the cap were closed & hot, then it would get pressurized. You don't want to open it because the sudden decrease in pressure will make hot coolant blurp out the opening.

If there's any air still in there, it'll work its way out to the overflow reservoir over a couple days of driving. So you might notice that reservoir level go down just a bit.

 

Type II is a little darker then windshield fluid.

 

How fast will this happen and will I see this? This can't be the reason why the coolant drops right?

Also I'm trying to see how this fluid disappeared from the reservoir. A cracked head gasket allow coolant into combustion, I don't see white exhaust. What if reservoir cap was not on tightly? Can it evaporate over years? I found it a little loose when I checked.

And also one big question: When you drain at radiator, how much coolant is changed? Does elevation of front-end make a difference in getting every bit possible? I know there's coolant in the block and hoses so I'm thinking about changing on flat ground first, then filling it up and moving the car to an elevated area just for bleeding air. If I start on an incline, am I reducing the amount of fluid changed?

 

It should be about 1.6 gallons at change......after rebuild it lists ~2.15 gallons. So that should give you and idea of how much of the total you are changing.

I'd be sure the rad cap is sealing off, see any strange "white" stuff around the neck of the rad?

 

Nope, the rad cap and everything round it looks pristine. No traces of any fluids or steam or boiled off things anywhere. The actual fluid level in the radiator hasn't changed either since I've had the car. The reservoir fluid level hasn't appeared to change either since I've had the car for about three months.

When I do the coolant change and fill up the reservoir this Monday I'll keep an eye on the reservoir level but I think if the reservoir was actively being consumed I'd have no coolant in the reservoir by now. I have about half an inch left in the reservoir and that amount hasn't changed to my knowledge.

 

Sounds like everything might be ok. Remember hot coolant is pushed into the res....so as it steams in the res some fluid is going to be lost.

 

What does the actual layout of the radiator look like? I can see the black pipe that runs along top where filler neck is and pipe on the bottom connected to lower rad hose and drain valve. But what's in between where the fins are? Which rad hose sends coolant to engine and which hose gets coolant from engine? I assume coolant comes from engine through upper hose, washes down by gravity through the radiator and gets sucked back up through the lower rad hose. Is that the correct direction fluid flows?

I'm trying to see whether I can take this steam distilled water and pour it in at the filler neck and have it pick up some residual stuff on the way down and drain straight out of the open drain valve on the bottom. I'm hoping the dist. water can only go through rad and leave rad completely. I do not want the distilled water going to the engine block or the hoses. I don't want any water left in the system to upset the 50/50 concentration of the coolant.

Is this possible? Maybe to test I can put 1/2cup of Type 2 into it through top and put a cup on bottom to catch and see if exactly 1/2cup comes out?