You have an engine support bar for the job, yes? you're going to need that. You only use the sealant on a couple of corners/seams.... don't put it on the whole gasket. There are a couple of bolts for the oil pan that you get to through the bell housing. I missed one when I did mine... took a minute to figure out why the oil pan wouldn't come off. I didn't take the steering rack off, I just bungeed it out of the way.... saved a lot of time.
I know what you mean about the lift. My wife has a friend that's offered me his lift at his shop and even the service manager at the BMW dealership has offered me the lift. I hate working on the ground but I'm so paranoid that something will go wrong and I wont be able to finish the job. Plus, no matter how any tools I bring with me, there is always something I need that I don't have. I hate having to borrow tools and get stuff out of an unfamiliar tool box...Wastes time and then you have to try and remember which drawer you got their tools out of.
The one time I used her buddy's lift, I did Kristen's SSK in the M2. I brought a whole bag of my tools but still ended up having to use his tools. Then, I ran into an issue with one of the bushings that was slightly too big. That took a long time to work out. He had to leave to pick up his kids so he had to show me how to lockup his shop when I was done... Perfect example... even on a brand new car.
I will say it was a joy to be able to do that job on a lift. It took me 6 hrs to install the SSK in my e46 laying on the ground fighting one of the frozen pins that hold the shifter carrier on the transmission.
Dinan CAI &Throttle body, ESS Tuning TS2, Bimmerbrakes gen3 headers, UUC SSK & DSSR. Achilles oil pump, VAC oil pan baffle
M3 Motor mounts, UUC Trans mounts, Modified clutch style LSD 3.15, TMS front subframe reinforcement, Koni Yellow sports,
H&R sport springs, UUC sway bars, BMW Perf. Rotors, UUC SS brake lines, Hawk HPS pads, CSL replica wheels,
Rotora strut bar, FXR HID conversion, M3 Mirror conversion, BSW stage 1 speakers