Is it better to buy or lease a car or should I keep my old one?

[Daisy]

I have a 1999 Toyota 4-runner about 168,000 miles on it, with the engine light on, need to replace break pads and has a couple issues not sure how much will cost to fix but they say this car lasts forever so...with that in mind I am wondering if this is a good time to buy or lease a new car considering my credit is not too bad right now and my current car might die, just don't know the future. What is the best thing to do? Keep what I have til it's in bad shape so I save monthly payments on a new car? Buy a new car and start paying that down? Lease a car with the option to buy at the end? And is it cheaper to get a car loan directly from the dealer or through the bank or ? Please help thanks!