M104 Valve Cover Tightening

[R1990]

Hello all. I recently replaced the valve cover gasket on my 1990 300SL and got a few leak spots on the valve cover. Does anyone have a diagram of the bolt tightening sequence and the corresponding torque? I've tried to search here but couldn't find anything on this topic. Thanks.

[deanyel]

Haynes just says tighten the "progressively" to the specified torque - which is just 7 ft. lbs. Are you sure you got the contact faces clean? Seems unlikely you undertorqued them at just 7 lbs.

[71Rcode]

R1990 - I had a fit with this too. Ended up needing the rubber grommets for the valve cover bolts. You won't believe how much your originals have compressed over the years. I probably pulled the valve cover two or three times before I figured that out. I want to say I also used a bit of MB sealant in the valve cover channel before attaching the gasket --- just a tad. No leaks since. Good luck --- oh yes, just tighten with a 1/4" nut driver by hand. Doesn't take much torque. Just go in two or three stages and do in any crisscross pattern. 71Rcode