steering rack

[ron]

hi all not had any problems with the 328i till now so any mechanics or people with a fair mechanical knowledge may be able to answer a couple of questions pls. Car is a 97 328i coupe e36 , i suspect a problem with the steering rack as it is often now making a donking noise sometimes worse than others and not all the time normally when parking. I have been a Ford mechanic before i retired and know that it was possible on some fords to pull back the rubber boot and undo a locking nut and tighten the ball joint , do any of you know if this is possible with the e36 rack ??? failing that has any of you with same car or e36 with the straight six engine changed the steering rack and is it much of a job obviously track rod ends and fluid pipes but is the rack itself easy to remove and replace I still have all my tools from work so that is not a problem just not done this job on a bmw before