It is very bad to drive without coolant, especially more than a few blocks as driving without any coolant will mean that the engine cannot stay cool and there's nothing in the water pump which can also damage the water pump as well.
Without coolant you can often drive a few blocks or so but you should not drive very fast and should drive slow and if the engine overheats you should shut the engine down immediately.
If you have water you can put water in the coolant reservoir or radiator when the radiator and engine has cooled down to get you somewhere.
You cannot drive any amount of miles without coolant as the coolant is required to keep the engine cool and without coolant the cars engine will overheat and can even seize up and even cause head gasket failure which can be very costly to repair.
If you have no coolant and need to drive a mile or more miles, you should at least put water into the cooling system and top it off as needed and keep an eye on the temperature gauge so the engine does not over heat.
Water is okay to use in an engine as temporary coolant in an emergency but it should be replaced as soon as possible with actual engine coolant once you get the coolant leaks fixed.
If your car needs coolant or antifreeze your car will let you know by a dashboard warning light or an overheating temperature gauge or even steam that comes from the engine.
Also seeing any visible coolant leaks under the car or smelling a sweet, syrupy smell or by looking at the coolant reservoir or if your vehicle has a radiator cap you can check to see if the coolant level is low.
If the coolant or antifreeze level is low you should add some antifreeze/coolant mixture to the reservoir or radiator.
Coolant and antifreeze are basically the same but just coolant will cool the engine and antifreeze coolant is a combination of coolant and antifreeze that cools the engine and prevents freezing.
You can drive right after putting coolant in, but before driving after putting coolant in you first should let your car idle after adding coolant to allow the coolant to circulate through the cooling system and distribute evenly as well as purge any trapped air from the system, which prevents overheating and potential engine damage.
Monitor your engines temperature gauge and ensure that the engine reaches it's normal operating temperature but doesn't overheat and continue to check and top off the coolant level in the reservoir as is needed.
Coolant in a car should last around 5 to 7 years before you need to change it out.
The coolant normally should remain in the cars cooling system and not need refilling, but after around 5 to 7 years it can be a good idea to replace the coolant and do a coolant system flush to keep the cooling system working properly.
Coolant does not normally need to be refilled as it's a pressurized system and should hold the coolant as it circulates through the engine and radiator.
Although sometimes coolant may leak out through hoses, bad water pump and even in some cases a bad head gasket.
If it's a bad head gasket then the head gasket would need replaced instead of just adding coolant.
If you need to frequently add coolant to your vehicle then you likely have a leak somewhere as coolant does not evaporate.
The amount of coolant that should be in the reservoir is between the "low" or minimum and "full" or maximum marks that are on the side of the coolant reservoir.
Although this is only when the engine is completely cold.
Coolant also expands when the engine heats up, so the level of coolant in the coolant reservoir when the engine is hot will be closer to the full mark.
If the coolant reservoir is empty you can just add coolant, but also allow the engine to run and check for any coolant leaks.
Coolant should not normally need refilled unless you have a leak such as a bad water bump, bad radiator hose, heater hose, or even a bad headgasket.
When water pumps go bad they leak out the weep hole and it's a sign you need a new water pump.
But not all coolant leaks are from the water pump and so if you're losing coolant you should look around the vehicle for leaks and fix the coolant leak as soon as possible.
It's OK to mix coolants as long as the coolants are the same coolants and compatible with each other.
Different brands of coolants can be mixed, but the coolants need to be the same to avoid any problems such as gelling, clogging, corrosion, overheating etc.
You can add new coolant to old coolant as long as the coolants are compatible and the same.
If you just need to top off coolant it's okay to add some new coolant in with the old coolant as long as the old coolant is still good and not contaminated.
Make sure you use the correct coolant as mixing different types of coolants could cause issues with the cooling system and even lead to corrosion and clogging or even gelling.
It's best to drain out the old coolant and put in fresh new coolant, but if the coolant level is down just a little bit then adding a bit of new coolant to the old coolant is not usually a problem.
When adding coolant start the engine with the radiator cap off or if your vehicle uses a coolant reservoir you can add the coolant to the reservoir and allow the engine to idle for a few minutes.
Watch the temperature gauge and ensure that it does not overheat.
The engine temperature may go up and then drop back down when the thermostat opens up.
If you have an owners manual for your vehicle the coolant type should be listed in the owners manual.
Or if not you can input your vehicles make and model and year into Google search and it will show you what type of coolant your specific vehicle takes.