Date:         Mon, 28 Aug 2006 20:02:44 -0400
Reply-To:     Matt Sutton <msutts@EARTHLINK.NET>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Matt Sutton <msutts@EARTHLINK.NET>
Subject:      Manual Tranny Leak- full story (condensed), with mystery
Content-type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII"

Hi folks,

I'll start with a re-cap: Out on errands a couple weeks ago, the tranny on
my 4 sp 88 GL started leaking heavily. Upon inspection, I found a crack on
the front cover by the lower bolts. Daryl at AA transaxle sent me a used one
(along with great advice); Dennis Haynes wrote me a great procedural, and in
a drizzling rain this morning I started the job.

Jack stands or no, I never liked being under the van when it's streetside.
You can level the van, but you can't level the slope toward the curb, and if
you don't put some scrap plywood under the downhill jack you can watch it
sink into the pavement. It's discomfiting. I ended up putting the van back
on its wheels and loosening all the bolts necessary, not wanting to apply
any sideways force while the van was in the air.

Dennis's procedure went perfectly; that guy knows how to boil down a
step-by-step better than most manuals.

Here's the mystery content, if you're into that kind of thing: The crack
wasn't caused by an impact on the outside of the case, or an over-torqued
case bolt, or 200k+ miles of metal fatigue. There was a short 13mm-headed
bolt in there, which, for a short while anyway, had been flying around like
a low caliber bullet in a brain-pan. I'm sorry for the inherent violence of
the imagery, but that the only thing that comes to mind to describe the
effect. Not only the initial crack could be seen, but there were multiple
impacts, gouges, scrapes all over the place. When I pulled out the drain pan
into the daylight, trying to find what had fallen out when I pulled the
cover, the fluid looked like Goldschlager: tiny particles of brass(?)
suspended throughout. Strangely, and maybe this is good news, there was
little metal on the drain plug's magnet.

Where did this chewed up but clearly "VW Audi" labeled bolt come from? In a
panicked call to AA Transaxle, Daryl said the only place it could come from
was a bolt on the reverse shifter rod. Mine, however, was intact; I'd had
functional reverse as always. In fact, this is the first time the tranny's
been worked on (outside of a fluid changes), as long as I'd had the van.
Perhaps in it's first 100k reverse had been lost, a new bolt fitted, and the
old one left to float around for the next 100k? It's believable as a
possibility, but some how hard to fathom. And with no difficulties
previously, why now the sudden damage? If the bolt has been in the lower
section of the case, how would it make it uphill and through the 1" hole to
the front area?

To add good fortune to this confounding information: the van been test
driven and is working fine. It shifts great, actually, reverse and all. I'm
very lucky, and if it holds I'll be even luckier.  Another reminder that
these machines carry their demise with them, I guess.

Thanks everyone, for your help.

Matt Sutton
Brooklyn NY
88 GL