My son called me about his 96 318i, says it had a light come one and he can't find his manaul and I am away from home and can't look in mine. Would anyone happen to knwo what the round yellow/orange on is with a triangle and explanation point on it??? It may be simply an oil change reminder etc. but want to be sure.
Also, he has been complaining of a smell like oil and a little vapor blowing out the vent. I saw nothing unusual and no missing coolant or oil that would suggest a heater core or anything else. My thought would be maybe his cabin filter is clogged but have never changed it before, donot know know where it is. Anyone know this that can lend a hand?

the oil smell is more than likely caused from an oil leak. look at the back of the vavle cover just to be sure.

I rememeber seeing some oil on two of the valve cover bolts a while back while checking some other stuff for him, but could not see where it might cause a problem as far as hitting an exhaust manifold (1.9L) however that might very well be what he is smelling. My main concerns was the so called "vapor" he says he has seen a couple of times and this check engine light that I still cannot identify. The Haynes book I have is worthless and until we find the small manual it came with I am in the dark on that. I think it is simply the change oil light but I just am not sure. As for the cabin filter he has owned the car two years and I thought maybe it should be changed as he complains about the poor heating in this car. It puts out heat but does not seem to blow well. At least not what I would expect. We had issues with the control unit and the "sword" module right after he first bought it and it does better than then but just has never seemd right. Anyway I will double check the oil leak when he brings it to me this weekend. Thanks.

ask him if he added oil and spilled some. if not, its gotta be the valve cover gasket that need changing. I velieve I've seen the "vapor" a couple times. definately an oil leak.

the check engine light will have to be diagnosed. you should be able to use a generic OBD II tester to pull code(s) from the computer, and I'd be more than happy to tell you what those codes mean.

i dont think changing the cabin filter will do any good, since all it does is filter the air coming in. the blower is completely sealed off from outside factors. clogged up cabin filters can only cause an odor if its extremely bad, but hey in aint been done in a while, so probably needs changing anyway. you may need a new blower and blower motor regulator to fix the blowing problem.

whem I said check engine light I was referring to the round light with a triangle and explanatiion on it. Might not be the "check engine" light but without his manual I am lost on it. I know the airbag light well as I had to reset that twice for him since he has owned it. I cannot find anywhere on the net that simply tells me which light means what... will keep looking for it, got to be somewhere. I will ask about the oil spill too, and I suspect that is the smell they have complained about as you suggest. He will be here shortly and I will look at it some more and get back. Looks like it would not be hard to change, although these BMWs are different than the GM cars I have dealt with for sure... I will look into the fan problem as well, was thinking maybe a clogged filter might cut down on the air movement, but it seemed to me that while the fan blows at the correct speed it does not cooperate when trying to put the air at the floor etc. I am familar with the main unit and the "sword" as it is called but not with the blower motor regulator. I will study up on that if this Haynes book covers it. Thanks again, will advise what I find out. If it is a check engine light I will see about finding a OBDII tester. I have an OBDI unit here but that is all.

well mystery solved, at least the light is anyway...Turns out he accidentally turned on the heated seats, which he had never used before, and the light that light was simply showing that. They found the owners manual so that is good. I looked at the valve cover better this time and it is leaking some. Too cold to deal with right now so I have it on my list of things to do when the chance is right. One thing I am concerned about is the level of coolant in the overflow. It has always been about 3-4 " from the bottom of the tank and never changed. I added some a while back to bring it to a mark I saw on the tank, about halfway up. Now it is back to where it was before, so, either it blew it out or leaked it out. I will look at the manual on this, maybe I overfilled it? Will keep tabs on it though too. I smell nothing of antifreeze on the interior and they have not either. Will advise back if anything else turns up but for sure the gasket will need changing. Once again, thanks.