Oil in water, but no water in Oil?

[_Yoda_]

1996. Brand new engine, (2,000k) as well as radiator. Bought truck like two months ago from my dads friend, noticed oil in coolant overflow, so I replaced radiator and tank (which were old and leaked lol) and put all new coolant. I checked the oil and no water in there, but it consistently loses about quart a month, Since then its been two months, I've added a quart of oil and there oil in the overflow again. The truck doesn't leak any oil. Any help would be appreciated thanks! I'm 16 and don't have much cash, so if you could tell me what and how to check, rather than just stuff to replace and hope it works that would be best!!!! Thanks in advance!
Also is it ok to drive it? I still daily it. It runs great, heat gauge stays cool even in the middle of rush hour in phx w/ the ac pumpin.

 

[RonD]

Most common transfer of oil into cooling system is Automatic Transmission Fluid via the trans cooler in radiator
Have you checked the Trans fluid for coolant, or higher level?

The engine's oil system runs at a higher pressure than cooling system, so transfer of engine oil to cooling system would tend to be one way, oil >>cooling system
But there are no crossover points that I can think of, except at head gaskets, and there is only one oil passage on each head that could cause that, so long shot at best

I don't see any issues with driving it, but you do have a coolant leak which should be found and repaired

NEVER overheat the 4.0l, you WILL crack a head, period, no do overs, lol

You can get a UV Dye kit and add the dye to the coolant, then use the UV light to find the leak and also check engine oil and trans oil for signs of that dye to see which one the oil is coming from because there will be some reverse transfer

 

[rubydist]

How many miles are you putting on the truck in that month while it loses a quart of oil? It could easily be burning that much oil if you are driving it a decent amount.

 

[gaz]

Yoda,

It sounds like you have at least 2 issues.

You say that you are a quart low on oil after a month of driving (how many miles is this).

You say that oil continues to be in coolant; how much oil is in the coolant, where is the coolant it is displacing?

I would flush that coolant system until it has no traces of oil (radiator, hoses, heater core, heater hoses) and troubleshoot this with water only. Determine wether it has left over residue from the previous owner's folly or if it's directly related to your oil consumption.

If you do have a coolant leak the radiator cap seal is often overlooked.

I would spend the weekend figuring out exactly what is going on, so that you know what you need to correct.

 

[Broosedamoose]

If it's a brand new engine it's highly unlikely it's burning away a quart of oil a month! If you have a new radiator then a leak is also unlikely but not all new parts come without faults. How much oil is there in the reservoir? Is there just an oil slick on top or is there a layer of it? Though the engine is new, it could be a bad head gasket.