I have a 99 Pontiac Grand Am which has done 160,000 km.
Recently, I found oil in my coolant.
Will this damage my car? What could be the reason behind this?
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Sign up to join this communityNo, the car is not garbage. But it does need a head gasket replaced, or possibly has a cracked head. In worst case, the engine block is damaged, and the engine will need replaced.
Repairing the problem (hopefully only the gasket) and flushing and re-filling the coolant and oil should be all that's needed.
One very real cause of 'oil' in the cooling system is that the oil cooler for your transmission is part of the cooling system radiator. A small oil-cooler oil leak into the radiator may very well be your problem. Is your trans fluid going down?