What are my options for coolant as far as brand name?

The coolant has broken down, a common problem with the early GM long life 100,000 mile coolant. Have the system flushed and refilled with any name brand long life coolant which is all of them now.

Brand Name doesn't matter

You can use Dot 3 or Dot 4

I only use Castrol Dot 4 -- because it is avail
in my area ,for the last 30 years

ALL vehicles use the same fluid for brakes

Not so --- on power steering,trans,coolant etc,those
fluids are vehicle specific

All the new coolants used in modern cars will work in both new and old systems, IT IS A UNIVERSAL COOLANT, you car uses what is called Long life coolant, just use one of the name brands like PRESTON, PEEK AND SO ON.

Cheap until you know the condition of the motor. Top up the fluids with store brand or whatever is on sale and get the engine running. Let it warm up to operating temperature and start looking for leaks that need to be fixed. There's a reason why there's no coolant and it's not likely to be that the other guy drained it out for another car. There are a number of reasons there is no coolant, bad rad, bad water pump, bad heater core, leaking hoses, bad head gasket, warped heads. Fix this first and then most any name brand coolant is good.

Oil wise again name brands are your best choice. At least 10W30 or maybe 10W40 depending on mileage. Mileage in the 200,000 range would use 10W40 without any problems. Hope this helps.

BMWs are pretty particular about their coolant. The manual says Non-silicate, non-phosphate. If you go to the auto parts store, about all you will find that meets these criteria are the long life organic acid coolants. My experience is that the organic acid coolants destroy BMW radiators.
That pretty much leaves us with BMW branded coolant. I understand that BMW coolant is made by BASF, but I cannot swear to that. Doesn't matter since BASF does not sell coolant in the US.
You can get BMW coolant from the on-line parts vendors a bit cheaper (even after shipping costs) than you can get it from the BMW dealer.

Your standard 50/50 mix of name brand or generic antifreeze will be fine. Some manufacturers put in Dexcool and claim that it lasts 5 years (some do some don't) and even go as far as to say you must use that. Or they may say you must use Ford coolant, or Nissan coolant. That is completely false. This is just to direct sales back to them. Just like the 5-20 on some oil caps, using 10-30 is fine. They put 5-20 on the cap because the was the oil they could get the best performance and emissions out of based on fed requirements. Short answer. Get normal antifreeze from wal-mart or parts store.

ASE Certified

No, ethanediol is just glycol with a fancier name, but it's not the best option: its concentration is weak so it will freeze faster than the better ones so if the temperature goes below -15C you will have problems. Better add some good quality concentrated antifreeze to your radiator.

How to Buy the Right Type of Engine Coolant
I want to do this! What's This?

If you have ever bought engine coolant, you know that there are many brand choices on the shelves. Although mixing brands generally doesn't create problems, you may want to consider a few factors before deciding what type of coolant to buy. Read on to learn how to buy the right type of engine coolant.
Difficulty: Moderately Easy Instructions

1. Use ethylene glycol base anti-freeze. It's used in the majority of cars. This is a 50/50 mixture of water and ethylene glycol; it also contains corrosion chemicals. The corrosion inhibitors are the main difference between most coolant brands. Since systems contain various metals, it might be better to go with the brand recommended by your car's manufacturer.
   
2. Look for phosphate-free antifreeze if you drive a European car and it requires this type of coolant. Adding coolant containing phosphates may cause deposits to form in the cooling system. Make sure you follow the manual's directions.
   
3. Consider using recycled antifreeze. One way to do this is to attach a machine directly to the vehicle's cooling system to recycle the coolant. Another option is to recycle the coolant at a recycling plant or on-site. Recycling involves the following procedures: vacuum distillation, filtration, reverse osmosis and ion exchange.
   
4. Visit your auto parts store if you're unsure as to what type of coolant to buy or use.
   

Any type you want! depends on winter or summer! What weight you want A good medium would be 10 w 30

the best coolant is by far is the MOPAR/JEEP OEM coolant, next to that I would use Prestone brand long life coolant type..