When I mounted one of my 617 engines, I removed the plate/FW also and mounted
the block to the engine stand, As Dan said, that is a lot of weight hanging on that
aluminum plate.
I know you are trying to cut cost with this engine swap, and those FW Bolt are a bit pricy.
When I did my 4-spd swap, I bought 12 new ones. Then 22K miles later found a 300D FW.
Swapped in the new FW, and bought 12 more new one`s. Just the thought of...what if?
I could have squeaked by with the old Bolts, but the thought of them being torqued, and then the additional 90deg of torque
made me uneasy.
Like they say. "An ounce of prevention, is worth a pound of cure".
In your other thread on replacing the Crank Seal, I posted a couple links, one was where I got my FW bolts.
here is the Dealer I got them from. When I bought them they were $4.80 ea, now $5.00, and that is the wholesale price for manual FW Bolts.
I don`t know the Auto FW part#, if you find it, put it into this sites search for price.
Mercedes Benz SCREW - 6150320571
Forget E-Bay, I saw one guy selling them for $12.00 ea.
Charlie