Oil in Radiator

I just noticed oil in the Radiator.....
The 1996 67000 Miles, Astro Cargo Van, was hit in the Front end, and The Radiator was replaced with a Used One from a Shop......

all the Coolant Lines look like they were put back in ok,,,but I read in Haynes that the Quick Connect Types Lines, one should replace the Spring Clip and not be reused..

The Van is running ok..... but started to get hot, when I shut it down.... I noticed Oil going down on the Dipstick... so I added a
Quart, and got the Van back home... 30 miles away... under normal power..

I have a 12 Volt reading on the Voltmeter, which indicates a probable
alternator Problem...

I flushed the Radiator..... with water,,,, and Still see bubbles of Oil coming in ......
1) Could there be Fault with the OIL Cooler inside the Radiator....
2) Could I have a Engine Headgasket or smililar Leak..should a Compression Test be performed...the Engine goes fine,,,, no
loss of coolant is noticable..

Any Ideas Gentleman...

Did the used rad have oil in it to begin with?
Check your oil dip stick, if you see any white frothy stuff on it, your head gasket is probabley gone. But since you say the van is running well, you might have just gotten a dirty rad.

Did the used rad have oil in it to begin with?
Check your oil dip stick, if you see any white frothy stuff on it, your head gasket is probabley gone. But since you say the van is running well, you might have just gotten a dirty rad.

I Didn't check, the Used Radiator, for any Contents of OiL.. but I do notice the Current Oil Dipstick level going South... I did find out the OverFlow Radiator Coolant Tank is Cracked, and was leaking,
and caused a Slight Over Heating situation, to 235 coming back from the Body Shop..... ..

Looks Like Oil Floats on Water, and rises to the Top.,,, Murky Brown OIL..
in the Radiator,,, I am not running coolant yet, till I test the Situation better..
the Overflow tank had a lot in there Too... before I flushed.. ..



No Froth, on the Dip Stick... Normal OIL, Looks Clean and Ok... ... ..... Van Is running full Power,, at 75 MPH down I 5 North........ San Diego...



I guess I could drop all in the OIL Pan,,, just to make sure....


I'm thinking of getting another Radiator To slap on there....
and see if the Internal Oil Cooler is Possibly at fault in side the Radiator.... or take it to a Shop for testing... .

and if that's not the Deal,,, then There must be something else,, causing OIL to get in the Radiator... and then Testing down the Road of Compression Testing etc...

If it's a head gasket you are looking at an expensive repair job. Here's a thought for a cheaper test. You mentioned that the oil is brown and murky. If you haven't done an oil change lately, change the oil and run the engine. If the oil you see in the radiator is new and clean, you have a blown gasket. If the oil is still brown and murky after running the engine a while, the poor sole who owned the radiator before you probably had a blown head gasket and you have some gunky oil in the radiator.
One other thing you can look for is bubbles in the coolant. The compression in the cylinder is higher than the water pump pressure and will make bubbles in the coolant when the engine is running. Take the coolant overflow hose out of the reservoir and stick the end of it in a container of water. Run the engine, if you see bubbles it's a most likely a head gasket.

odds are if you bought the radiator used from a junk yard...its from a van with a blown head gasket (or who knows whats in there) and thats why there is oil in there. id flush the cooling system completely. then check for foamy bubbles in the radiator while its idling (do not open the hot radiator of course) if the bubbles are there then your gasket is shot. if theres still signs of oil in the radiator. i would do a compression test...if your head gasket is shot then the compression test would show it. personally ive never done a head gasket on a astro...but looking at the lack of room it looks like it could be a pain in the a**. good luck

Yes the Radiator was Picked up from a Younke Yard.... So I pulled it out..... No Foam or water in the Crank Case,, but we Get Gilette Foamy in the Radiator... ... SO I was thinking of having one of the Radiator Shops in Chula Vista Test the Oil Cooler Side (The Drivers Side) for any Leak, by Blowing Compressed air of sorts in there...

The oil in the Crank case looks Good, and the Engine Runs sound...!!!!

but who knows, maybe it's a tiny leak someplace... after all a Engine is nothing but a Big pump



Right Now I have The Radiator tilted, so the Gillette Foamy goes into the Waste Recepticle.... Over the Weekend .... It's Saturday Night...so we see on Monday what the Prognosis is at the Radiator Shop... ....if the oil Cooler is Ok....... by holding Compression, then One must assume

1) Assume that the Head gasket is Blown and Proceed to testing the Spark Plugs with a Compression Check..... by Pulling off the Cowl
in the Compartment, and I getting at those Spark Plugs...

2) I thought about Plugging the Inlet and Outlet Oil Coolant Lines,,, Temporarily to test the Radiator, to see if any Oil comes in.....
from the Head gasket Side..

Will let you all know,,,, soon enough

Gat,
On my '89 Astro, the oil cooler internal to the radiator is for the transmission. I assume this is the same for a '96.
Is it engine oil, or auto trans fluid in the radiator?
Which dipstick is the fluid level dropping on? Engine or Transmission?
I think if there was a problem with quick connect fitting where the oil lines tie into the radiator, you would see leaks external to the radiator.
It is entirely possible that the oil cooler is leaking inside the radiator.

I think it is Very Important to let every one Know what the problem Was , and The Ultimate Solution.... !!!!!!!!!!!!!

It turns out the Oil Cooler Leaked, and became defective inside the Radiator........ and this Consequently caused OIL to start filling up into the Cooling system... Fortunatly no water Circulated back, because of probably The Higher Oil Pressure, from the Oil Pump...

He performed a Air Pressure Test, on the Oil Cooler,,,, by Sealing Several of the Main Radiator Hose Lines, and submersed the Entire Radiator in Liquid,, and watched for Bubbles, coming out one of the Coolant areas............ sure enough Like a Flat tire,, the Oil Cooler was Shot.... !!!!!

A guy at the Radiator Shop, in Chula Vista, near San Diego CA, turns out a lot of Radiators, and Says, that the PLASTIC Radiators, have a Very Short Life with the additional Hot Heat of the Oil, and causes Leaks into the Coolant System... The break is right near the Neck where it meets the Plastic,, It appears to be all metal inside!! He says the average Life of These Radiators is about 5- 8 years , and then he has a Catalog , to order New Sides of either the Transmission or oil Cooler Side, of the Radiators. Since he takes the Sides off, then he simply rods it out for Good measure... Total Price 95 Dollars !!

This Radiator Specialist, checks both Trannsmission & The Oil Cooler's
for adequacy...

I feel Very Fortunate, to not lose the Engine !!
So People take a look once in a while to see if your fluids are up to Level, and that your Coolant doesn't have Tranny Pink Fluid, or Engine Oil in it..!!!