Hi all,

I will replace my radiator shortly - everything I've read and heard tells me that my oil-in-coolant issue is a radiator problem, not a head gasket. My dipstick *is* a little funky, but give my car a break, it sat in a parking lot for 4 or 6 months and my Pennzoil sticker reads: "change your oil at: 253,000 or 6/1/07". My odometer is at 248k! And under my engine oil cap, it looks - well, like an engine. No froth or brown gunk.

Anyway, I have the radiator and am waiting on some mail order hoses and thermostat. I have read that you need to plug the automatic transmission cooler lines - will I need to top up the tranny oil after I'm finished? How much of the oil will be left inside the old radiator? And will noname "import ATF" do?

I plan on taking the car in to my mechanic to have its transmission flushed as soon as I've replaced the radiator. I might have the oil changed as well, since the oil is old.

Gaah, I need to take a towel and wipe all the grime off my engine block. I can see a little red under there!

Ari