[techweenie]

Congratulations on your purchase.

Don't be lulled by the noise going away on the cylinder head leaks -- assuming that's what it is. Do a compression check. If the compression loss is significant, the heads will be 'chattering' against the cylinders and eventually can erode both surfaces. As I'm sure you know, the only cure for pulling head studs is total disassembly and putting case savers in the case.

I got a Sporto a couple years back, intending to swap transmissions, but I found driving the Sporto was kind of a kick. Give it a chance. Most have been replaced with manual transmissions, reducing the selection for people focused on getting a Sporto -- and there are a few.