Depends on which side of the carrier it is leaking. On the rear side you are looking at fully disassembling the gearbox. I no longer use the gasket here. Loctitie 518 flange sealant. If it is a small leak try cleaning the area really good and using Permatex spray and seal leak repair.  Leaking here is often a sign one of the housings is worn or damaged by corrosion.  

Dennis

-----Original Message-----
From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On Behalf Of Andrew R.
Sent: Monday, July 28, 2014 12:13 PM
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject: Tranaxle gear carrier gasket

Hey all,

Oh the joys of installing used parts into a car...

Bought a low-mileage manual trans built by German Transaxle a couple years ago.  Finally installed it this summer with a rebuilt motor into my '87.
It's now leaking gear oil and my mechanic says it needs a gear carrier gasket.  A&P Specialties in Portland, OR is going to do the job, I think, but quoted me 10-12 hours of labor.  OUCH!

Does this sound about right?  No idea how much work it is to fix this leak.  For 1200 bucks, I could nearly get a new transaxle installed, no?

thanks,
Andrew
87 GL