Tough decision to rebuild or trade in 2002 Jetta

Ugh, I absolutely love my 2002 Jetta TDI, which is why it was so difficult to get the call this weekend that my timing belt had seized up on a roller and the head would have to be rebuilt. Now, I was already having some serious transmission problems at 130K and I was bracing myself to take the car in to replace/rebuild the trani. My plan was to take the car in this week for the transmission, but all hell broke loose last week. The engine stalled while driving and I had to tow it in to the shop. Come to find out I'm most likely looking at a new trani AND rebuilding the engine head. I've been quoted somewhere in the neighborhood of $6-$8K for the work depending on the total damage.

Here's my question --- is it worth investing in major repairs on this car with 130K miles? Or do I cut my losses and buy another taking a few bucks on trade in?

Thanks in advance for your advice.

If it were me I'd fix it but I do all my own work.

The car is probably worthless as a trade in so you have to compare 8k to the cost of whatever you'd buy.

Hate to be a vulture but if you decide to sell it I'm in Sunland/Tujunga and would be interested.

Thanks KLXD. Yeah, you hit the nail on the head. I'm weighing the costs of buying a similar vehicle against doing the repairs. Of course, I don't do these sorts of major repairs myself so I am relying on a trusted mechanic--which is not free labor. I'd be happy happy to drive this car for another 60K miles or more. I burn B99 and enjoy having an alternative car because of that. I'm just not that excited about any other cars that are available now. There are a slew of electrics coming on the market, but more options will exist if I hold out. I'd upgrade in a heartbeat to a new golf TDI, but I'm hearing bad things about using biodiesel in the new injection system.

I have some more damage assessment coming from my mechanic. And I'll take the next few days to really think it over. Thanks for the offer to buy my clunker.

Is your mechanics on out trusted list? Make sure he knows TDIs well.

I am asking because there is very few trusted mechanics in CA.

Well, knowing the history of your car makes likely would make it more valuable to you than a car you know little about. I'd fix it thereby knowing that two of the most expensive components that could go wrong were recently dealt with. That's a lot of piece of mind.

Prior to pulling the trigger on that, I'd make sure that the motor's lower end is in great shape and that the rest of the car is in a condition worthy of such expense.