Mixing automatic transmission oil and powerstering fluid

The oil that is in the cooling system may be Transmission fluid if you have an automatic transmission and the transmission cooler in internal to the radiator. Check your transmission oil for water contamination. If it is contaminated, you will probably have to rebuild the transmission and replace ALL of the transmission lines, and all rubber coolant hoses as the transmission fluid will eat the rubber hoses from the inside.

possibly -but I would advise against it. Automatic transmission fluid is manufactured to suit the electronics of particular transmissions and the wrong fluid type or mixing oils may cause more problems that what it would be worth just to get the same fluid.

Might you have an automatic transmission?
Automatic transmissions have their own dipstick.
I don't know about Aussies, but here in the states, transmission fluid has red die added to it to prevent your mixing them, and to tell you whether it is engine oil or transmission fluid that is leaking.
If you mix them by mistake, you must drain them and put in the correct fluid, or suffer ruining the engine or transmission, which ever one has the wrong fluid.
Your oil light should not be coming on. That is a different problem.
Oh, yes. There may be a dipstick on the power steering pump it you have power steering, but it should be really small. (short)

If no external leak and the transmission fluid colour looks white, the problem belongs to the automatic gearbox oil cooler. The oil cooler has broke mixing the gearbox oil and coolant causing this milkshake. It's a small radiator core type oil / water heat exchanger. It is cracked inside and transmission oil is mixed with engine coolant. Because the transmission oil pressure is greater than engine coolant pressure, the transmission fluid level drops. See also the coolant colour inside recovery coolant reservoir inder bonnet! It could be like this:


The automatic gearbox oil cooler type oil / water heat exchanger (oil cooler):


In the picture above the transmission oil pan was removed for oil filter replacement.

If no external leak and the transmission fluid colour looks white, the problem belongs to the automatic gearbox oil cooler. The oil cooler has broke mixing the gearbox oil and coolant causing this milkshake. It's a small radiator core type oil / water heat exchanger. It is cracked inside and transmission oil is mixed with engine coolant. Because the transmission oil pressure is greater than engine coolant pressure, the transmission fluid level drops. See also the coolant colour inside recovery coolant reservoir inder bonnet! It could be like this:



The automatic gearbox oil cooler type oil / water heat exchanger (oil cooler):


(In the picture above the transmission oil pan was removed for oil filter replacement).

the power steering has a resavour near the fender with a lid on it remove the lid and it has a dip stick on it as long as it's on the stick it's OK. The transmission uses Mercon dextron III and it's important to check with the engine running and to not over fill it. From the low part to the high it's only half a quart so when adding put in in a litttle at a time and check it each time and if it doesn't look right chack it several times as the oil can be on the sides of the dip tube. and too low is bad too. If in doubt. have this work done by a trained perfessional as being wrong can be very expensive.

Automatic or manual? They use normal fluids, unlike Audi's (powersteering) where some needed the synthetic green stuff or else the seals would go. There are really good synthetic fluids available that are much better and last longer. Check out the VWvortex forum for lots of great VW info.

Cheers,

Kevin

Is it Oil,or Automatic transmission fluid?
I've changed several Catera Radiator's because the transmission cooler cracked inside of them!!
Better check the transmission fluid for engine coolant too,Coolant in the Automatic Transmission will kill it purdy Quick!

only if the cooler is in the radiator// if you have an automatic trans and your getting red oil in the radiator it maybe the trans oil check the trans fluid to see if you are getting water in the transmission if so change the oil in the trans & replace the radiator

you can buy special "power steering oil" but automatic transmission oil is pretty much the same stuff and you can use it too.