ok, i've done the stop box successfully, I'm on to the oil pan gasket. As dangerous as the stop box was, the oil pan gasket looks a bit more ominous, as the two trans bell housing bolts have to come out and it looks like not enough room to remove the pan comletely without taking off some linkage or a cross member (I haven't looked again exactly since last week). In addition, the two tough bolts look very difficult to get to flush, as the cross beam there seems to block enough to make it hard. Finally, it looks like I would have to clean and seal (approved sealant came with gasket and oil filter i ordered) with about 10cm of clearance only, all just dropped a bit from it's place. Maybe I should go ahead and remove it all, to clean it correctly and place the new gasket. Any charitable thoughts?