Sorry to resuscitate an ancient thread, but I need to know the name of the cover that OP removed in the second photo he posted- the cover on the transmission that exposed the gear.

I just crawled under my truck to look for the source of a leak and that cover and both bolts holding it on are simply gone!
1996 Ranger v6 3.0 automatic

Any help in identifying that cover so i can replace it would be greatly appreciated. Thanks,

 

Photobucket does not like my old machine, but I expect the plate is the inspection plate on the bottom 1/3 or so of the bell housing. It keeps road 'stuff' from getting inside the bell housing, protecting the front seal of the transmission, and keeps stones and such from jamming the flywheel teeth against the bell housing.
If you need one, I'd go to a scrapyard. Shouldn't be hard to find.
Back in 2010, I would have suggested that the OP look at his oil pressure sending unit, as it is mounted atop the block and could be the source of the leak. The sending unit has a bakelite 'cover' swaged in place, and they can get loose, and pump all the oil out over time.
tom