^^^well brother, i kinda want to say that what better time to learn how to remove a light skid plate with only 8 bolts holding it on, but I do understand and agree with you that some people my have an issue with that (besides we are all learning everyday). That is the problem with buying used, you better have one of two things, a willing mechanical ability or lots of money.
I would recommend to anyone to see if the seller of any cruiser allows them to let you take the vehicle to a toyota dealership for a look over. You won't buy a house without an inspection, why would you not have an inspection for a used car that costs $35k-$60k.
Low oil level could be a caution, but if the engine was serviced by a shop, and done as fast as possible while the engine is hot will not be very accurate as the level it should be checked when dead cold. The cam towers in question can kinda be seen around the coil-over buckets in the wheel wells. The timing chain cover is much more rare to have problems, but unfortunately you do need to remove the front skid and look at the bottom front of the motor. None of this will smell like burning oil, its just leaking. Even pretty good leaks will be rather slow at a loss of about a .5 quart every 5,000 (your millage may vary)
This next part is only for those still interested, when you look at your motor, the sides where the spark plugs sit, that top is the valve cover (which has a gasket), cam towers are the next break of a separate component below that, and below cam tower gaskets is the head gasket (those are pretty reliable on the 5.7 though). The timing chain cover is the piece that is behind all the components that have belts attached to them on the front of the motor. To replace the cam tower gasketing, the timing chain cover must be removed. So the order of removal incase you are dealing with this and wonder why it costs so much: drain cooling system and engine oil, remove fan and clutch assembly, radiator, intake manifold, fuel delivery system, valve covers, every component with a belt on it must come out (the a/c compressor can remain connected so that's a plus) so water pump, power steering pump, alternator, use puller to remove crankcase pully, now you can remove the 26 bolts that hold the cover for the timing chain on the front of the motor, remove exhaust and intake cams and now you can get to the cam towers. Clean everything spotless, get some bad ass toyota black gasket maker (it doesn't come on the engine from the factory and can even stop Harleys from leaking) and put everything back together and ensure you didn't drop timing. The 5.7 is an interference engine so if not timed right, a piston can make contact with a valve and there goes your engine.