the oil or trans fluid is mixed with the dexcool in this case... theres 'oil/trans fluid mixed coolant' floating inside the coolant overflow tank... and the cooling system had some rust... and i used lucas super coolant in there as well, which is blue and turns dexcool a bit darker, almost like an orange-red... paper towel wont give me an answer i dont think... both concoctions will be 'chocolate milk' i believe...

 

you said it was floating so I thought you would be able to separate it.

Anyhow, pop the transmission lines off the radiator and blow some compressed air in there. See if any bubbles come up. Not too much pressure mind you.

You should also take a sample of the ATF to see if it's milky.

 

yeah it rises to the top but it was chocolate milk-like when i first noticed it.
oil and tranny fluid both look normal.
i am going to plumb up the new tranny cooler and just bypass the oem one... with the coolant hitting 220F its too hot for the tranny 'cooler' anyways in my opinion...

 

oil in coolant is bad but coolant going into the trans is death to a transmission. its impossible to flush out. water wrecks friction material clutch packs.