Transmission Leak

I have a general question about a transmission leak in our ancient van. We have been having periods of time when the vehicle will not shift and the speedometer stops working. I believe this is the speed sensor, but we have just dealt with it because I was not able to get in there and replace that. (This is just background info.)

Last week my wife was driving and when she came home there was a trail of transmission fluid following her down the road. She went back to where she was driving and there were huge spots of transmission fluid where she stopped before she got home. I put more fluid in to see where it is leaking, and it does not seem to be coming from the pan at the bottom. It is somewhere further up, but I can't see where exactly.

My question is this: If the fluid is leaking from somewhere other than the pan, is there any chance of an easy fix? It seems like there is going to be a lot of work involved in finding the leak and then actually accessing it. I am thinking it is time to retire the old girl.

My wife wants to fix the van and pass it on to her family if it is something relatively cheap. I just want some opinions before spending money to get it looked at. I hope this makes sense.

Thanks for your input.