I stripped both of the large, Phillips head screws that attach the driver's seat backrest of my 380sl to its hinge, even though I used heat to soften the Loctite and a #4 bit socket in my attempt to remove them. So, I then tried to use an impact driver, but couldn't get the bit to grip the stripped head at that point, and I certainly didn't want to have to drill those suckers out.

I therefore ended up asking a friendly local mechanic if he had any other way of getting them out, which he did as follows. First, he used a carbon steel punch whose point had been sharpened with a grinding wheel to punch several holes into the circle surrounding the stripped indentations.

Then, with the punch at a 45 degree angle, he hit one hole after another hard and repeatedly in a counter-clockwise direction for a few minutes until the screws loosened.

Now that the screws are out, however, I can't seem to find a part # for them anywhere, particularly because free subscriptions to the EPC no longer exist. So I was hoping that one of you guys could give me that #. Alternatively, if MB replaced those screws with the hex head socket bolts I've seen in some postings, I'd appreciate that #.


Thanks very much in advance.

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1981 380SL
Chassis: R107.045