brief intro, plus my E28 won't start

[laerm <laerm@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Hey all...

My name's Micah Stupak, I live near Philadelphia, PA. About a month ago, I
bought an 84 528e with 155000 miles on it after having an 83 320i for a
bit. About a week ago, it started to idle hard, spew a bit of smoke out
the pipe, and be a general pain. It wouldn't stall, just idle really
rough. Well, last night, as I went to bring it down to a friend's to check
out the ECM and check it out with a multimeter to see if it worked
properly (my first guess), nothing. Wouldn't start. I turn the ignition,
and it coughs and sputters and sounds real nasty. So now I'm thinking it's
not the ECM (at least not just the ECM), maybe the mass airflow sensor or
the oxygen (I already checked the cold-start, that's functioning
properly).

Anyone have any experience with this problem? Any and all pointers
greatly appreciated.

Micah Stupak
'84 528e

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