All it takes is for one time to jack up on that spot and it's messed up. Most people don't realize that it says "Not a Jack Point" on the plastic. Here's a pic for reference to a good one. Wish I would have taken a pic when I had to fix mine.


My '97 doesn't say it for some reason....though my '93 does.

 

I always advise people to find a mechanic they trust and take the car to them for review before buying. It is hard to hide issues from someone that is under a hood 8-10 hours a day. Low mileage on a car can be deceptive. On a 18 year old car how it has been maintained is more critical then mileage. I have owned cars with 175,000 miles on them and I would not hesitate to drive in 3000 miles across the country and I have seen cars with 60,000 miles I would not trust to drive across town. On the plus side pilots tend to be very good about maintenance, most consider recommended maintenance as absolutely mandatory.

If I remember right the 98 Ls1 engines have a couple of year specific issues, you should search google, maybe someone else will post more info. All the early Ls1's could have piston slap (a knock in the motor) but it shows up worse the colder it get so it may not be an issue for you. The valve train on these LS1s is very touchy. I bought a 2000 with 45,000 miles on it. The owner changed the oil every 3000 miles, which works out to once a year. Non-synthetic oil will start to break down and leave carbon deposits in less then a year. This caused a lifter tap. Some sea foam and 2 "mobil 1" oil changes later it is almost 100% gone. It is now limited to the first minute of run time.

Good luck.

 

My 93 is bent so bad the plastic has started to rip.

 

WOW bye what I been seeing you got a steal of a deal as long as it runs good ,most cars with those miles can be $5000 to $7000.00 hear 66.000 is low miles ,then the price great ,its what I paid for my 3800 with some dents in it at 88.000 after a few repairs ,most places you cant buy the ls engine for that $2500.00 yes 17 year old car I was thinking 2002 on other post ,my 95 is 20 years old this year but not an antique till 21 in my state ,so next april ,I been waiting to get my first set of plates ,so I may not get them till it 22 years old according to my birthday