[V8] Oil cooler lines

[Kneale Brownson]

I took off the belly pan to clean up the mess from the hydraulics pump leak
we just developed on the V8, and I see a discouraging wetness around the
lower connector to the tranny oil cooler.  That's what the little radiator
thingy below the other radiator is, isn't it?  My version of ETKA doesn't
show the alignment of parts I see under our car.

Anyway, the braided steel lines end at the little radiator  with very rusty
connedtors, and the lower one, on the passenger side of the cooler, is all
wet, I presume from tranny oil.  Everything else in the vicinity is dry, so
I presume the rust is penetrating to the point of allowing seepage.

If I undo that line (if I can find a replacement), does all the fresh
tranny oil I've just been installing run out?  There's a plate held in
place by allen screws that appears to firm up that connection.  Does that
mean I can unscrew the plate and then just pull out the lines?

If the lines turn out to be typically Audi-overpriced, is there an alternative?

How long will a rusting, oozing connector last before it dumps all the
tranny fluid?