I just used the premix OEM...............save me headach Is other coolant would make your bike run better, faster...? lol
I think it would depend on what the "active" ingredients are. (I don't know what is actually used in coolant). If Honda uses "X" percentage mixed with water, and Prestone uses "Y", that may not match well. However, if Yamaha also used the same "X" that Honda uses, but maybe its more diluted, you should still be fine. I don't think the color would matter as long as the "active" ingredient is the same?
Colors are generally just dyes used to identify brands and make you stick to buying one over another. Almost all standard coolant contains either ethylene glycol (most commonly green) or propolyne glycol (blue or yellow typically) which has worse cooling properties than ethylene but is non-toxic. Any coolant containing either of these products can be mixed without issue with any other coolant, although it is a good idea to keep the same color so you can tell better if your coolant ever becomes fouled from a head gasket issue. The one exception to this is DEX-COOL (red or orange). This is a proprietary long-life coolant that GM uses in it's cars, which is more trouble than it's worth according to most. One of the biggest problems is that when mixed with ethylene or propylene glycol it reacts and forms a gel gunk, which clogs the cooling system resulting in all sorts of havoc. So don't mix red, and try to keep your colors matching. When in doubt, just flush the system and refill.
Careful, mostly with ingredients. Silicate is not good either. The colors are die to help you know easily what type of coolant you are putting in. Prestone has a " fine with any color" coolant. It even says fine for aluminum radiators etc. but ...it's not exactly good. It still has silicates (abrasives) which are bad for our water pumps as well as other parts of our cooling system. This is basically the one things just go get the Honda coolant for. It's cheap and no worries. I think that engine ICE stuff is also ok but I don't think there is enough in a single container for a change out. I use the Honda coolant and water wetter. Every two years.
Silicate is added for corrosion prevention for steel radiators/heater cores/coolant lines, but tends to build up on aluminum over time, and can also harden and turn to a sand-like substance if the coolant is not changed at the correct interval. The sand can wreck water pump bearings real fast, and my guess is Honda uses very small coolant ports in these engines to save weight/space and they're worried about the buildup clogging said ports as a result. Silicate-Free coolant is readily available at most parts stores, but DO NOT use "low-silicate" or "Aluminum-Compatible" coolants. Make sure is says "Silicate-Free" somewhere on the package.
