5KXO, uh, Drew540, is quite right it sounds like shipping stuff half-way round the world might make sense after all, at those prices.... In which case it might be worth contacting Fritz's Bits as well (although FAB do have a good reputation for service).
BTW the getrag gearboxes with the detachable bell-housings are often more expensive simply because people can fit them to other cars relatively easily. Other bell-housings can often be made to fit onto different gearboxes more easily than different bell-housings match up to other engines. I think the getrags are a favourite upgrade for RWD Ford escorts and the like IIRC.
I am told that getrag shift quality (although always on the heavy side) is very lubricant dependant. Also be aware that different transmissions require different lubricants, in part because of a sensitivity of certain copper alloy parts (not found in all boxes) to some extreme pressure additives (not found in all lubricants). Just be sure to get the right lube; the wrong lube may be responsible for premature wear experienced in some boxes, who knows?
I am told that rebuilding a getrag gearbox is very expensive because of the parts cost, and that is before the labour is thrown in... Parts availablility for the older gearboxes is now said to be limited, as well. I guess changing a noisy bearing probably makes some sense, but much more than that and it might not.
If you get under your car you will see where the sensors are on the auto box. Whichever box you end up with, you need similar mounting points for the sensors on the replacement gearbox. Without this the engine won't run. For a while on E34 and E32 cars these mountings were left in the bellhousing casting (even though they were not needed on these vehicles) as blanks. These blanks can be drilled to accept the older sensors. No-one knows if there is a specific date after which you definitely won't find these blanks fitted; it seems to have been a bit random.
Another complication is that you also need a flywheel from a manual gearbox car, preferably that was originally fitted with the same sensors etc as your own car. This is because the sensors read the flywheel, and I don't think later flywheels have the right lumps and bumps on them for (say) a pre mid '87 car. If in doubt, compare with the lumps on your torque converter once it is out.
The E28 535/528 and E24 ('82 on) pedal boxes are the exact same thing as far as I know, but there are the two different types, pre and post '87 (E24). The changeover date might be slightly different for the E28 . The simplest swap is to get the one that matches your present brake set-up (i.e. with the torsion bar and LH servo, or without and a RH servo/reservior), but it might be possible to swap some bits about and make something that works OK.
hth
cheers
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~~~~~~~ Brucey ~~~~~~
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