hi

thanks for both of your responses. the idea of a letter to ford at this stage is great advice.......hopefully covering us in the future if a substantial problem is found.

i checked the oil on the dip stick last night and although the oil does still look "oily" there is some evidence of milky deposits. im not overly concerned at the moment because the car is driving fine with no symptoms of overheating or other problems.

i think i might get my usual mechanic to change the oil and filter and i'll monitor it afterwards. the car has covered little over a thousand miles since its last service but as you said the oil may have been poor quality or the workmanship at the service could have been poor allowing some moisture to get in. im sure if my mechanic thinks theres a serious problem he will alert me to it when changing the oil and filter.

i would hope that given the car is still relatively new and it has only covered less than 12000 miles we should not be experiencing any major mechanical issues with it at this stage.

best regards

L