Cars are another interesting thing, Phanuthier you say that's why you drive a Civic and not a BMW, but as you say it's a necessary evil so I'd be more focused on what the cost of driving the car per period of time was..
If a $20k car is worth $10k after x period of time, and a $40k car is worth $30k after the same period, I'd rather drive the $40k car (presuming that it's a car that's more enjoyable to drive, otherwise no) all things being equal.
Though Civics from what I understand hold their value well so the comparison between a Civic and a BMW probably isn't a good one.
Our last two cars we purchased outright (one brand new, one slightly used), and I'm finding that the amount of $$ put into them plus the purchase costs is almost the same as making car payments.
I think the ideal is to buy a car fairly new, drive it till the warranty expires, then sell it
