not Rover P6 specific oil in coolant question

Note to admin - If you feel this doesn't belong here please delete, I understand.
I am posting this question on this forum because I think the members here are very knowledgeable and might be able to help me out.
I have recently bought a 1975 Alfa Romeo 105 series Spider and apart for a 5 mile test drive I don't have any history to the car because it is an overseas import.
I have yet to drive it locally since I am still waiting for registration papers but as most of us would do I have been poking around. The problem I have is that I have found engine oil in the radiator at the neck. The oil in the car is fairly clean and my impression is that the oil in the radiator is dirtier. When I was looking at the car prior to purchase I had opened the radiator cap and did not see any oil, the only thing I didn't do was poke my finger.
I am not sure if the problem had occurred before and was repaired but the radiator was not flushed properly or if the problem is there now.
The engine doesn't smoke and when running , no bubbles are seen in the neck of the radiator and it doesn't misfire either. In the test run it ran beautifully.
If I had to replace the oil and add food colouring to the new oil , firstly will it do any damage to the engine if left for say a maximum of 20 miles, secondly would I see the coloured oil in the rad? Is there any other way I can confirm if the problem is there? In the meantime I will be flushing the cooling system a couple of times.

Thanks
Richard
 
Fair point.
But you are trying to apply logic to something Italian................... come on !
 
Is there any kind of oil cooler in the radiator? Does it look like the radiator was replaced or repaired recently? We had truck at work, that developed an oil leak into the cooling system. After the two Wit brothers (dim wit and half wit) had blown the motor sending a conrod through the side of the block we had the motor replaced. There was still sufficient oil in the heater core and coolant likes that we had to flush the cooling system several times to get it clean again with the residual oil.

I would suggest pressure testing the cooling system and see if it holds pressure. If it does not hold pressure then that could be an indication that oil is moving from the oil way to the jacket. This would assume that the oil pressure runs higher than the cooling system pressure.
 
I did an Alfa once with that symptom and it turned out to be a head gasket. That would of been early 1980s and the car wasn't new so I think it's the same motor.

Yours
Vern
 
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