I talked to a dealer master tech yesterday about whether I had to take off the valve cover and pin the cam sprockets on the passenger side before changing my chain tensioner, as per the shop manual. He said that the clearance between the chain and the bottom of the valve cover is so tight that there is no way--with the engine off--that the chain could jump a tooth when the tension is relieved. Therefore, he believed I could do the job without even taking the valve cover off. Can anyone confirm or deny this?

Also, today, I read an old post on this forum that the new tensioners do not use oil pressure in addition to spring pressure. Can anyone confirm this?

Thanks.

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1993 400E, 256,000 miles (totaled)
1994 E420, 200,000+ miles
1995 E420, 201,000 miles