Engine crud @ head gasket repair

[RLLOVETT]

This just in...got Grandma Moses back today...complete with new radiator, power steering cooler, timeserts, main timing drive gear, (too much to list!)...to the tune of $3200...plus my 600 car rental for 3 weeks...minus the shop's 600 'adjustment' for taking 3 weeks instead of 4 days to do the job...ouch...drove it around the block before paying--started fine, sounded good, no P codes...about halfway home it threw up the p028 (tran solenoid) code...aaaarrrggghhh...I'll have to hide it from the bride for a while or I'm dead meat...so much for my mantra...

[Roswell256]

that p028 maybe the one that it throws that can be taken care of with a new PCM.

[RLLOVETT]

Hi all! Just an update--the old girl is running beautifully at about 203 degrees to 223! Drove an hour at 45-70 and things couldn't be better except the 'rubber dam' under the radiator blew out the underside of the car at the end of the run...it had been put back on with only 4 or 5 of the dozen or so clips that it started with and it was the next thing on the list...anyhoo: Is it essential (to keep the splash off the front plugs)? What the heck is it called so I can look it up online and price it? Many thanks, as always!