I've been reading around the web that only Honda brand coolant should be used for the Honda. Tonight, for the first time, I noticed my 1995 Civic EX's temperature gauge three quarters of the way to the hot setting, whereas it's usually one quarter past cool. I'm going to check the reservoir and the radiator today, but before I buy Prestone, I thought about heading over to the Honda dealer for the Honda brand. How much does it usually cost in comparison to Prestone? The car has less than 30k miles and never has had a coolant flush.
In the event that it's nearly dry, is plain distilled water ok to add? If so, wouldn't that mean subsequently flushing the radiator so that the water would be replaced by the antifreeze/water 50/50 mix?