2002 4.4i Trans heat exchanger thermostat?

[flatlander]

I was letting the X5 warm up the other morning (it was very cold out) and noticed coolant dripping out the bottom. I looked under the hood and found green coolant oozing down the inside of the radiator core on the drivers side.

I also noticed that the group of coolant hoses on the passengers side just above the trans cooler were wet with coolant too, and they were sort of smoking!

Somone mentioned in another thread that there is a thermostat for the trans cooler there. Can anyone confirm this? This is NOT the primary thermostat attached to the water pump. Has anyone had to replace it before? Could a bad thermostat here cause my radiator to crack and leak?

My radiator is only 2.5 years old. I've replaced all the coolant hoses in the past year. It just seems this coolant system is soooo fragile, especially when winter comes.

[SlowRider]

I just had my trans thermostat replaced. Like many parts on our rides, the thermostat itself may not fail but the plastic or rubber seals can fail and cause leaks. I'd imagine this would mess up the pressure and affect other parts of the cooling system.