Should I buy this car? 1990 Toyota Corolla?

Go to O'Reilly's and tell them your situation, they can even rent you tools that you will need and tell you how to do the job. If you don't want to do the job call somewhere like Brake Masters or a Local Mechanic, and get a free quote. You left out how many miles the car has. If it has over 175,000 I wouldn't pay 970 for it unless it is in good shape and has been takes care of. To put this in perspective my brother just bought a 91 nissan 323 with 190,000 for 100 dollars. Did a tune up, changed fluids, and he has a nice little beater to drive to work, and gets good gas mileage. good luck