I have a 2000 Toyota Sienna XLE with 111,000 miles. My engine is bad and will cost about $5,000 to fix it. The blue book value is about $5,000. Do I fix it?
It’s your Sienna. Only you can decide.
Why is the engine “bad?”
My mechanic said there were some sort of shavings in the motor.
I’d get a second opinion before deciding. Is the $5,000 to rebuild your engine, or is that for a new engine?
Is the van running now?
I did get a second opinion. Both estimates were about the same. The van is not drivable.
I agree with mcparadise that you are the only one who can make this decision, based on your own value systems and your personal finances. However, whether you fix the Sienna or buy another vehicle, you need to question your mechanic about the source of the problem.
I strongly suspect that the vehicle was not maintained properly (either by you or by a previous owner), and unless you practice conscientious maintenance, you may wind up destroying another engine before its time. There is an old saying regarding the cost of maintaining a vehicle vs. repairing that same vehicle:
“You can pay me now, or you can pay me later.”
In other words, if you don’t pay a few hundred dollars for maintenance every 30,000 miles or so, you are likely to wind up with a bill for many thousands of dollars, as you have. Maintenance is always cheaper than repairs.
If you are buying a used vehicle, make sure that you buy one that comes with maintenance records, so that you can verify that it has been maintained in accordance with the manufacturer’s maintenance schedule. Also, be sure to have a used vehicle inspected prior to purchase by an honest, trustworthy mechanic.
Whether you buy a new car or a used one, make sure that you follow the manufacturer’s maintenance schedule, which is sitting in the glove compartment. Failure to follow that maintenance schedule, and/or failure to read the Owner’s Manual, is the source of an incredible number of very expensive problems for a car owner.
Good luck with your decision!
Part of the decision must be your financial situation, which is not our business, except to explain what I mean.
If you do not fix this one, you have to buy another one. If you spend only $5000 you will have another one like this one was last month, and that motor could also go out without warning. And, you will have no idea of how it has been maintained.
If you fix this one, and it has not been well maintained, other things, such as transmission could also go out from lack of maintenance. Of course, that is also true for another used vehicle.
The only other choice is to buy a vehicle with much lower mileage, and hopefully better maintenance experience. Have a mechanic check it out.
Of course, perhaps you don’t have money to upgrade.
IN ANY CASE, WHATEVER YOU DO, READ YOUR OWNERS MANUAL AND RECOMMENDED MAINTENANCE PLAN, AND FOLLOW IT OR YOU WILL HAVE THIS AGAIN. This is called, tongue in cheek, “Go and sin no more.” 
I have a 2002 Sienna with 149,000 miles. With 111,000 miles that engine should not be bad, unless maintenance was not followed. No one makes a car good enough to run on sludge and acid lubrication.
OF course I might be all wrong,and it might have been used for heavy towing or some other hard use.