All,

Here'e the vehicle:

1995 Tacoma Limited
3.4L V6
Auto trans, I believe the A340H

Sounded like a bad catalytic converter at first, but the noise came from the bell housing, directly under the torque converter. I pulled the inspection plate and to my surprise I found the flex plate to be cracked almost completely around, close to where it bolts to the crankshaft.

I have the '95 Toyota service manual for the truck, and it shows all the components that need to be replaced to remove the trasmission...including the front differential.

I do have the tools and the mechanical experience to tackle the job, but this is obviously going to take some time. Has anyone done this? If so, how did it go? Do I really need to completely drop down the trans?

Any ideas WHY the flex plate would crack in the first place?

Thanks!
Dave