[Lynn]

Steve,

Regardless of the precision of your temp gauge, it will still show you trends. As long as the needle is good and steady, you are probably OK. If you see brief excursions, either up or down, this might indicate an intermittent thermostat.

It will certainly do you no harm to check your oil for the presence of coolant and is probably a good idea. But, as long as the oil is good and clear on your dipstick (referring to translucence and not color) and there is no indication in the coolant itself, I wouldn't worry about it. Again, I would confirm with the test though. Obviously, if you see any indication of whiteness in the oil itself either on the dipstick or at oil change, then you want to be concerned (oil should start to loose its translucence even before you detect the whiteish color unless, for instance, one of the head gaskets goes all at once.)

Lynn