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Well, one of the key things you can't check out since it's in the water--the bottom. That said, I bought mine without being able to haul it out of the water and took the owner at his word that the bottom was fine. Fortunately it was.

Immediate attention would be to all the through-hulls (ski locker, two aft wells, scuppers) to see if they need re-sealing/replacement. A couple of mine were not seated and there was some water in the foam around them, but nothing serious. Unfortunately to do this you'll need to haul it.

Check electronics, lights, etc., plus any funky wiring. The back of the electrical panel is open and will have some amount of corrosion after all those years around salt water.

I would guess the engine is an OMC 90, Johnson or Evinrude, as this was the common one installed on the 16SL back in the day. They can go for years. Can you do a compression test at the next visit? Numbers within 5-10% across the cylinders are more important than the level. Compression can run anywhere from 100 to maybe 115 (maybe someone can offer more info). Mine were all around 105.

Run the boat, rather than just starting the engine. My engine ran OK, but it didn't start very well and idle was a bit lumpy. Turns out the carbs needed to be rebuilt, but most importantly the plastic float bowls needed to be replaced because ethanol had warped them.

Is the VRO system still hooked up? If it's got the original pump that might need to be replaced also (ethanol again).

John K.