Something does not sound right. In my experience the only way that can happen is if the drive axle was pulled out of the transmission by accident or when changing the axle shaft. Fluid would leak out of the trans axle then, because the seal rides on part of the inner axle. Hope this helps.
Yes sounds like the axle had withdrawn or was not fully seated in the transmission. There is a company that independent auto repair shops get their information from, this same information is available inexpensively for people that work on their own cars.. The information is year make and model specific, covering repair procedures, torque specifications, fluid capacities and specifications, service bulletins, component locations, wiring diagrams ect.... Alldata is very easy to navigate http://bit.ly/AllData_Repair_Manuals_Online
Not sure if there information goes back that far but Hyundai as a car manufacturer put a lot of free technical information and workshop manuals on line for Hyundai owners. Check out www.hmaservice.com lots of great information.
