Based on your financial expertise, provide your response or viewpoint on the given financial question or topic. The response format is open.

Why do people buy new cars they can not afford? 
I would answer your question very simply: marketing works. "If you don't have a new F-150, you are not a real man."  for men, and "If you don't have a new Honda Pilot your kids are in danger." for woman.  One observation that reinforces this are the amount of new(er) Buicks on the road.  Five years ago, they were pretty rare, now there are many.  Their marketing strategy of "We don't suck so much anymore", seems to have worked.  I don't get it. Last year, Consumer Reports reported that 84.5% of new cars are financed with an average payment of $457 over 65 months.   I like your analysis, but lets say instead of following this path, Brad and Jenn, put $250 a month away in a cookie jar (to cover repairs and car replacement), and $664 (457*2-250) in a mutual fund.  After doing this for 30 years, they will have 1.5 million.  Driving a new car is precluding many from being wealthy. It is hard to jump aboard the "income inequality" bandwagon when you see with brand new iphones and cars.