My son just bought a nice 96 318i, 1.9 engine, around 95K. I knew it would be different to maintain compared to the GM,Dodge, or Fords I have dealt with, but I do not see a lot of help from the owner's manual and would like some input. The manual has two recommendations on motor oil viscosity, 5-30 and 15-40, depending on temperature. It mentions "special oils" as prefered, but does not mention any specifics other than rated for -30 to 80+. Also mentions no additives, so unsure if synthetics are out or not. Am checking to see what previous owner used, but appreciate any feedback. Also, I have never heard of a transmission requiring NO changes or flushes, any input on this? I usually change filters every so often and flush at 100K. I can't even find the (tranny)fluid dipstick on this car, does it even have one???? Anything on this car a common problem that we should watch for? Seems like every car has them, any input on any of these appreciated.

First off, congrats to your son and welcome to the BMW world. Here's some pertinent info on recalls and misc issues for the '96 318i:

http://www.alldata.com/TSB/06/96064032.html

Next up, the trans fluid:

http://www.pelicanparts.com/BMW/techarticles/E36-Tranny_Fluid_Auto/E36-Tranny_Fluid_Auto.htm

Finally, you sound like you're a proficient enough mechanic . . . here's a list of what BMW's Inspection I & II programs are composed of, in case you wanna give it a go at doing it yourself:

http://www.logun.org/inspc.htm

Lastly, as your signature says, I won't comment on motor oils! Hope this all helps, and good luck with the car.

Thanks for the very helpful information, especially the transmission fluid change info. Strange how there is no dipstick for that thing, but I knew it would be different in some ways. We got a lot of records from the second owner, who had it for 2-1/2 years. Looks like they had a dealership use 15-40W "mineral" oil(according to bill) then started using 10-30W penzoil. Unsure what to use as time for a change is approaching. Unsure what the 15-40W is when they mention mineral, perhaps they mean regular oil as opposed to synthetic? Anyway, looks like the car has been well cared for, so appears to be a good deal for him. Thanks again.

Yeah, sounds about right- mineral oil most likely refers to regular oil as opposed to synthetic. They may have called that out because a lot of BMW owners prefer to use synthetics instead, since the recommended intervals between oil changes is typically longer for a Bimmer than other cars. PelicanParts.Com has a couple of good tech articles on motor oil, you might want to give that a read.