as i said to you on the phone, the AW11 s/c will be the MR2 to own in the future. clean tidy ones are getting real hard to find. everytime i get a wreck, i'm hounded by owners/restorers for the same handful of parts as they want to get them back to mint condition. the closer to original they are, the more valuable they will be in the future. 
 
so, whats the plan??

You were saying you could do the job yourself with a few friends. At $5300 I'd be getting them over.
I'm truely shocked by the price. $1300 to take the gearbox out and $1300 to re-fit?
So that means everytime I needed a clutch changed in a manual the labor alone would cost MORE then $2600 by these guys?

Here is a link to a MR2 manual gearbox on ebay for $550
 
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Toyota-AW11-MR2-Mk1-4AGE-gearbox-/231044807345?pt=AU_Car_Parts_Accessories&hash=item35cb57fab1
 
another one for just under $1400
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/JDM-AW11-MR2-4AGZE-Transmission-Supercharged-Gearbox-Toyota-MR-2-4AGE-/380706941809?pt=AU_Car_Parts_Accessories&hash=item58a3e6eb71
 
Not sure if its the right one for yur car but if you are not in a rush to get the car done I'd hunt around and take a bit of time first. Maybe get a list of all the parts your need for the conversion like pedals, linkages etc...

I'd buy a second manual AW11 that is crashed/cheap and do the manual conversion yourself.
Part out the remains of the parts car for some extra beer money.

Hey guys.

So i've decided to the take the car off the road and manage without a car for 9-12 months. I have access to my girlfriends car, to get to work and around a bit. I'll look around for parts while it's off the road, but i'm not in any rush to fix the car or get another car.
It will be stored in a carport, if i move places i'll buy a car cover for it to keep it out of the sun and rain. If i decide that fixing it is not an option financially then i will just have to sell it.

if you decide to sell it, give me a call