fwiw, I have the coils as mesh animation, so if you want it, just shout...
I would recommend as less mesh animations as possible (too GPU heavy as each frame every vertex must be interpolated). Preferably use keyframe animations (matrix transforms) for rockers and arms.
As far as splitting the entire mesh up, this is definately recommended too. One big mesh will hurt performance... BADLY. It won't fit in the game anyway as index buffer that the game uses is 16 bit (65K indices). This is a limit of DAT-format (as well as older GPU cards). I recommend splitting meshes up by material type, but also type of geometry. The hull, one object. All sorts of cabinets, one or more objects (if they are spaced apart far away, another seperation may help performance) Pipes, etc, one or more objects, glass, one or more objects, and so on... Just like the devs did.
Textures, use 1024K over 2048K or even 4096K. Better use a few more smaller textures, than one large one. A large one is easier, but a few more small ones is better performance.
I do have another more expanded post regarding this somewhere. Search my profile.
If you want the game to be able to render highly detailed interiors, you will have to put some thought into importing it.
NB: I like how it all looks
NB2: Tomi, I will reply to you tomorrow!