Penrite Racing investigating Payne engine

Penrite Racing is leaving no stone unturned on Matt Payne’s Ford after the new points leader’s tense run on Friday.

Payne seized the championship lead from Broc Feeney in Friday’s NTI Townsville 500 opener, finishing third behind Cam Waters and Brodie Kostecki.

Throughout the race, Payne reported issues with his Ford V8 engine, telling engineer Jack Bell: "It feels like it's trying to drop a cylinder, but it's not.”

Bell reassured Payne that the engine was in fine working order, and the Bathurst champion duly came home with an 11th podium in 20 starts this season.

It's understood the #19 Penrite Mustang had been fitted with a new engine pre-event.

Speaking post-race, Payne explained: "I just sorta picked up a little bit of a vibration early on after the first couple of laps, which isn't really normal.

"I feel like we've done a few races this year, so my bum's got pretty good sensitivity. It just didn't get any worse throughout the race which was good, so we managed to finish well and strong."

Once the car was moved from PIRTEK Victory Lane to the garage, Penrite Racing mechanics began looking over the car, before running up and engine and completing diagnostic work.

Executive Chairman Stephen Grove explained that the team didn’t see any signs of engine issues throughout the race, but opted to take a closer look given Payne’s concerns.

“It's a brand-new motor. We saw nothing on the telemetry,” Grove told Supercars.com.

"Matt had a feeling there was something wrong. We can't find anything on it, so they're just going over it now just to make sure it's right.

"It's at the start of its life, that motor.”

Payne will carry a eight-point lead over Feeney into Saturday.