Should I fix it or sell/trade it in for another car?, head gasket leak & transmission bearing broke Options

[JediFonger]

hi ya'll,

first all. i use my 1999 Celica GT as transportation and that's pretty much it. i don't invest any mod $ into it. it's standard everything except the alarm.

got some bad news at the latest oil change: head gasket leak is causing my exhaust manifold/pipes to burn some oil and causing huge billows of smoke during engine start. it's the worst at COLD start, but more minor after that. my mechanic says to keep driving it and not waste $ to fix it. my friend says that if i'm not careful, the leak will worsen and if i don't watch the oil level and there isn't enough the piston might burn a hold through the engine or somn. mechanic says estimated part&labor is $1,000

5speed stick transmission has ball bearing trouble. the labor & parts is somn like $1,000

so it could be around $2,000+ or i can trade it in and get new car.

i bought this one in 2005 @$12,000. it's only been 5 years and @$2,400a year. i feel like i want to get my money's worth and i want to keep driving it. i'm thinking about fixing it and just continue to drive it. is this wise or is it time to trade up and get a new vehicle?

the head gasket leak is a concern of mine. i don't want to forget to add oil in and allow the leak to burn a hole in the engine.

will having ball bearing noise problems inside of the transmission be OK or should i fix it lest it cause any other issues?

either way these 2 are fairly labor-intensive tasks. what do you guys think i should do? i do like 6G and i luv driving it... but even if i fix this and it becomes a money dump... i'd rather get a new vehicle. when the head gasket is changed out, do i have to change ALL the head gasket or just the one that's causing issues?

re: ball bearing, can i change all of it?

[JediFonger]

er, forgot to add that i am NOT mechanically inclined at all. iz why i have mechanics to fix it for me =P.

and the burn only happens at startups, not during.