[E28] New list member with lots of questions

[Patrick Burns <patrick@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

Hello all,

I've just purchased an '86 528e with 179k for the measly sum of
$1,800, and am going through it before putting it on the road, fixing
all the things you might suspect would be wrong with a 14 year old 5
speed 528e with 179k miles on it. I've installed a new water pump,
coolant hoses, cam timing and accessory belts, heater valve core, cold
start valve hoses, idle air bypass hose, crankcase vent hose, and
performed a valve adjustment and the headrest fix. The local dealer,
Trans Atlantic Motors in Hyannis, MA, has great in that the parts
department is well stocked and staffed by knowledgable people, but of
course the prices are that of a dealer. 

I'm currently in the midst of tearing the shifter apart (not sure of
the car's build date, but I've got a steel shifter frame) to press out
the stock (nylon?) bushings from the bottom of the shifter and the
thingy which attaches to the tranny's shift shaft, and replace them
with either bronze or delrin bushings which I'll turn up on a friend's
lathe, and replace the bushing(s?) locating the shifter ball. A short
shifter would be nice, but taking up the slop will suffice for now as
the car's purely for commuting, and will only see the track when I use
it to cart tools there to work on friends' bikes. :)

I'm going to be attacking the front suspension next, and am looking
for a parts supplier, as the dealer has quoted me some pretty steep
prices for the parts which I intend to replace. Unless somebody's come
up with something really neat since the 750 trust arm bushing, I
suspect I'll purchase Steve's modified 750 bushings (I can't seem to
find the bushings listed on his site separately from the thrust arm
rebuilding service though. If you could contact me with the price for
just the bushings, I'd certainly appreciate it. Will the $40 Falcom
ball joint separator work for removing the lower control arm's ball
joint from the upright? Seems silly to use a forked ball joint
separator and ruin a good dust seal, then have to buy the whole
control arm.) and install them myself since I have access to a
hydraulic press and the thrust arms' ball joints and dust boots appear
to be in fine shape, but I haven't settled on what to do about the
idler arm, lower control arms, tie rods, and that steering rod in the
middle (can't seem to recall the proper name at the moment). Is it
possible to replace just the idler arm's bushing, or is there a
supplier who will sell the whole arm at a price which would make it
silly for me to turn a new bronze bushing from bar stock and rebuild
the arm? Is there some sort of 'hot setup' for the lower control arms?
The dust boots on their ball joints are shot, and if I'm going to pull
them apart... Who's got the best prices on this stuff? 


Thanks for any info.

Patrick Burns
patrick@domain.elided

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