Firebird Reliability??

Hey guys, I'm currently checking out this guy's '97 Firebird. He has 141K miles on the engine. Can you guys tell me if it's worth buying? And for all of you experienced Firebird owners, how much longer do you think the engine will last in terms of mileage? And how much am I looking at if I wanted to do an engine and tranny swap? It's an auto by the way. Oh, and one more thing, I'm new to cars 'cause living in the city isn't really required to own a car and learn about them. But just humor me with these couple of questions. What's a cold air intake and what's a sport catalytic converter and what do they both do? Thanks a lot guys. I am indeed a newb.

Well it depends on how long he had it and why does he want to sell it

if it's not a v6 and is a LS1.. LS1's normally last 175k - 200k miles and that's on running nitrous from about 60k miles..depending on what nitrous kit your running and your shot.. this is all 100 - 150 shots

My 97 FB has 104K miles and I haven't a problem yet. It just purrs like the kitten driving it.

First of all a 97 would not have an LS1, it would have an LT1 if it's a V8. It should last quite a while longer if it was treated properly in the past. If the exterior, interior and drivetrain are in good shape it's worth somewhere around $3000-$4500 if it's a V6. If a V8 around $5000-$7000. This may seem low but 141,000 miles is pretty high. A cold air induction system is simply in the name. It's a freer flowing induction system that gets colder air also, a good typical upgrade. Don't worry about getting a high flow cat unless it needs a new cat.
P.S.-stay away from nitrous, if not used properly you'll have the car for around 142K miles.

That is alot of miles but if the vehicle was taken care of 200K mostly trouble free miles is not unheard of.

Thanks a lot guys. Oh, and FormulaLT1, you probably remember me from the Camaro forums. I didn't buy the Camaro because the seller sold it to someone else without letting me know until later. So I kinda got screwed in that one, but that's okay. Thanks again guys.

No problem and I think if your looking for a performance car you'll be happy with either 3.8 or LT1