of 3 5 by weight or less of fe 3 0 by weight or less of sn 45 by weight or less of zn 12 by weight or less of al 2 0 by weight or less of mn 35 by weight or less of ni and 0 5 by weight or less of p and cu in balance one al type example includes one or more of 1 2 by weight or less of si 1 0 by weight or less of fe 5 0 by weight or less of cu 1 5 by weight or less of mn 5 0 by weight or less of mg 0 5 by weight or less of cr 5 0 by weight or less of zn 0 5 by weight or less of ti 0 5 by weight or less of v and 0 5 by weight or less of zr and al in balance the metal gasket 10 in accordance with the present invention may further include intermediate layers formed between the substrate 13 and the covering layers 14 one intermediate layer is made of ni when cu or cu base alloys is used for the covering layer and made of cu when al or al base alloys is used for the covering layer the intermediate layer may be formed on the substrate by for example plating or cladding the presence of such intermediate layers effectively prevents a fragile intermetallic compound from being developed between the substrate and the covering layers and prevents generation of voids during the heating process and helps consolidate bonding between the substrate and the covering layers the production process is adjusted so that the ultimate thickness of the covering layer should preferably be.