I drive a '12 Corolla that I bought Certified Pre-Owned (with warranty) last year…and I did finance it (17.6% down payment). My '96 Sable gave up the ghost (like, I couldn't drive it to the junk yard), and it was around tax-return time which where I live means all the $10k or less used cars have their prices inflated ridiculously. The most I could spend cash wasn't enough to get a reliable car, so decided a car that will last me for many many years would be a better long-term financial decision, despite having to finance it, than buying a couple cheaper used cars and doing lots of repairs. My '96 Sable had cost me $1600 and I'd driven it for 4 years, so $400/yr wasn't bad, but no such deals when I went shopping this time. 🙁
My stereotype of accountants would be cars that are in relation to their earnings, but generally more professional/practical/etc. So, for example, if BMW is the price-range for the accountant in question, I'd expect to see a X4 instead of a Z4 (based on the pictures here: https://www.bmwusa.com/Standard/Content/BYO/Default.aspx I don't know cars enough to know which would be which without something listing their names 😛 ).
I do weight “How much happiness?” when deciding how much to spend. That's why we get Pizza Hut every Friday night instead of getting Little Caesars, cause we like Pizza Hut enough to be worth the extra money. And that's why I'll sometimes get the stuffed crust pizza that's $11.99 even when they have a special for $7.99 for the other crusts. But for me, driving a fancier car isn't something that I'll enjoy that much, cause I'm not a cars person. My Corolla feels like the lap of luxury to me! So, I don't spend more on it. My man likes nice cars, though – when he's ready to replace his Corolla, I'll fully support him getting something nicer and more expensive (even though it comes out of shared funds) that he likes more, cause he'll actually get happiness-points out of it.
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