one of the more common places for these trannys to leak is at the point where the overdrive bolts to the tranny just foward and above the pan gasket. also happens to be one that is the most misdiagnosed leak on the aw's. hopefully that is not it. it is not cheap to fix, however it won't get worse over time.

I once had a leak that collected and dripped from the bottom of the fitting that holds the dip stick tube onto the oil pan fitting. It turned out that the dealership "professional" mechanic removed the dipstick fitting when performing maintenance on the transmission. When he/she replaced it, they did not bother to loosen the starter bolts that secure the dip stick housing tube in place. Hence, the tension caused the fitting to be misaligned when he wrenched them back together; this caused a deformation of the compression fitting and resulted in a small but noticeable (and unrepairable) leak. Of course the dealer denied it, and I had to buy one from a junkyard for $25 :(

good luck

Dave and Spook are right on. You have to clean and then inspect. After 230,000 miles I just had the same problem and was leaking at pan seal and plug. I just bought new filter and gasket to put on this week end.

Solonoid seals?? Those are O rings and rarely ever leak.
The mechanic must open his eyes and inspect very carefully and see where the leak originates, no guessing is allowed. Then he repairs the leak, very simple process. That may involve cleaning off the outside of the tranny first then having another look in a day or 2 to observe the source. Normally identifying the source should not be a problem. Possible sources are front seal, rear seal, linkage entry points, and yes the solonoid O rings and the pan gasket. Even the drain plug can leak. Size of the project depends where the leak is. I doubt that you have any such thing as a "general seal issue".

--
David Hunter

Dear Ian,

Good p.m. and hope this finds you well. Where is the fluid coming from? If the casing is wiped clean, the source of the drip should be pretty obvious.

If the fluid is around the edges/side of the tranmission pan, someone should check the tranny pan bolts. They should be snug, plus 1/8th turn. Snug means you turn the wrench with one hand, gently, until the bolt stops. One-eighth of a turn means just that. Putting too much muscle on tranny pan bolts can mean shearing or stripping them.

Use a hopscotch method. Go from one side of the pan to the other, alternating along each side. This compresses the gasket uniformly.

You may need to remove the exhaust bracket at the back of the pan, to get at the rear bolts.

However, if none of the other bolts moves when you try to snug it, don't bother removing the exhuast bracket, as the rear bolts likely are secure.

122K is not a lot of miles. Based on posts by real experts, it would surprise me - and be indicative of abuse - if the seals have failed.

Hope this helps.

Yours faithfully,

spook
Yours faithfully