If it is a touch and sew it may not be worth the repair. The repairmen call them Touch and Throw. We have one here my husband has been fooling with for a couple of months off and on. He says it isn't a real well made machine. That being said if you can get it looked at not for an arm and leg it is probably worth having it evaluated anyway. Maybe she just WANTS a shiny new machine. She's the boss.
Good luck.