thanks m8. its deffo gearbox oil and not engine oil. i know the diff its all in the smell m8 lol.. the thing is i would have thought the water would have got in the gearbox, but its not dont ask me how i ant got a clue. i've drand the box and its still fresh oil, no contaminacion (thats not how u spell it, but u know wot i'm on about lol). its the header tank thats showning all the signs with the mayo looking water. and its smells bad lol......... and it drives fine untill the oil level gose 2 low then it stops working, if i top it up it works again........ i just dont get y the oil is getting in the water, insted of the water getting in the gearbox its a strange 1 though.. could i remove the cooler as i'm not going 2 use it 2 tow, so should not need a cooler, or i'm i going all wrong about it, its my 1st auto as well, never worked on 1, got some idea how it work though but its not enough... give me a manual anyday i can rebuild them no probs lol.......... anyway thanks people..