I'm planning to adjust the valves on my "new" 280SL soon. I have an article by George Murphy in a recent Star that describes the procedure, and it doesn't sound that tough. He talks about turning the engine over with the starter, but I understand that it will turn fairly easily with the spark plugs out using the crankshaft bolt. The only thing that concerns me is the reference to the situation when the adjuster doesn't require enough torque, and has to be replaced. I guess you don't know this until you have everything torn apart, which makes it difficult for a do it yourselfer who has to mail order his parts! I hope mine are all ok.

Any tips on doing this job properly will be greatly appreciated.

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This happens very infrequently where the adjuster is faulty.
The adjustment is very straight forward. Good luck.

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Benzmac:
ASE CERTIFIED MASTER AUTO TECHNICIAN
SERVICE MANAGER FOR 14 BAY FACILITY
MERCEDES SPECIALIST 8 YRS
PARTNER IN MERCEDESSHOP.COM

I did the valve adjustment on my 280SL on Saturday, and everything turned out fine, thanks to the Star article by George Murphy and the tips I received here.

I thought I would post two additional "tips" for mechanical novices like me, in hopes that they may help others who don't do these things every day. First, the valve adjustment specs are in millimeters, not inches (no wonder the valves all seemed too tight when I first checked them...). My feeler guages are were inches, and I had to go out and buy another set. I couldn't find a metric set, but the new set I bought contained two that were close to the metric specs (0.102 and 0.254 mm, as I recall). Second, be sure to remember to remove the wrench from the crank bolt after you're finished and before starting the engine! I did (fortunately), but broke out in a cold sweat when I pondered what might have happened if I had forgotten to do so.


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You might find it easier to connect a remote starter to the cold start switch. This is a 2 pin switch located in the back of the head. It has two screw in connections. If you plan on keeping the car for a long time, you will prefer this way of cranking the engine over.

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