oil pump release spring? i'll look into that. it has me baffled. i know what a motor with 0psi sounds like, and mine is definitely getting oil. i also know a motor without oil pressure wouldn't run for the last few months without a problem. what can i do? could a passage way going to the gauge just be blocked? but that would be worse at start up. runs fine 120k 55 psi at first cold start. drops t 20 eventually at highway speed. then 0 at idle. can i eliminate a crank bearing as being the cause? i'm trying to judge how bad this problem is. thanks a lot for your time jim