Our race at AMP was cut short due to a sudden loss of oil pressure. We tried to diagnose at the track, but the crack pulley was tight and the oil level was correct so we knew a removal and disassembly was next on the diagnostic list.
Back in the shop, I pulled the engine and dropped the oil pan. Inside, where it should not be, was part of the oil pick up tube. The remainder was still bolted to the block.
I realized we have had several failures lately that seemed to be caused by vibrations. So, I decided to take a close look at the balance shaft timing. Sure enough, one of the balance shafts was off a couple of teeth. This likely happened when I was rushing to change the water pump before the Road Atlanta race.
I am going to change the seals on both balance shafts while the motor is out so I will make sure the timing is correct before I reinstall the engine,
We also discovered that the rotor button had failed, However the engine was running fine with no evidence of lack of spark. This will be replaced with a Bosh unit.
The inspection of the rod bearings shows very minor wear. Looks like we got lucky and shut it down in time to avoid major failure. I will have the replacement bearing Calico coated before installing them.