dutchcrunch

yes it can. I would pull the distributor and check. you have to go thru the babbit material then copper to get to the steel on a bearing.

dutchcrunch

here is a washer

PaulW_964

Thanks very much dutchcrunch, I will look into that

RichieRoo

Hi chaps

Dutchcrunch's idea would be a lovely solution if it turned out to be right.

I dug out a shot of my distributor shims on the shaft. I guess if one of the smaller shims (or the gear itself) ground through the larger one... possibly?

I'd so like it to be true. Does this help:

PaulW_964

Thanks very much Richie, I will pass this on to Paul on Monday... That would indeed please me if were a shim

dutchcrunch

RichieRoo , nice photo work. should this be the case, this could be the result of the lower distributor bearing seized up.

PaulW_964

So we've looked into the possibility of the mystery piece of metal being part of a distributor shim washer and my specialist and I are in agreement that it is unlikely (sadly) due to the fact that the gearing at the end of the distributer would have to have broken off, which in turn would likely stop the engine running, as shown here:





There is always the option of just ignoring things, drive the car and see how we go but I don't think I'm brave enough for that. Especially as the metal was an almost perfect fit to the IMS bearing. If we left it to wear away further we could be looking at damage to the crank and crank casing and significantly increase the repair bill. On that basis the only way to see what is going on is to open up the engine and in which case we may as well rebuild.

It was worth consideration though, so thank you guys

jevvy964

...not if the washer had already broken in half?

PaulW_964

I guess that could be the case, but unlikely given how closely it sat on top of the bearing

greg1990964

Couldn't really tell if your car had a rebuild recently or not. I hope it was up there in mileage so it's not too painful.

PaulW_964

No it hasn't yet. 88k on the clock and a few small oil leaks so it's not the end of the world to rebuild

greg1990964

It would be interesting what the shop charges to do a rebuild. Let us know. Starting soon?

dutchcrunch

when I say the lower bearing seized , it does not mean the distributor gear will fail, as the shaft will turn within the inner race, but the shims will become a wearing surface. if the bearing is good, the gear washers and distributor shaft will turn as one piece. just looking at the lower gear part will tell you nothing.

lets say that that bearing was seized, and a washer did fail to the point it fell apart, you would not know until you took the gear end off and inspected the shims and bearings. perhaps i'm not the best at technical writing but i'm sure someone else can explain it better.

dutchcrunch

judging by it size this thing had to come out leghthwise out the lower sump. maybe this was already in the drain pan???? from another car

PaulW_964

Thanks, I will make sure we remove the distributor first just to be sure. The one shown in the photographs was from another car.