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Yellowjacket, spreadsheets do indeed changed one's attitude and feelings about financed purchases, but I must say that paying cash for any depreciating item is what any CPA or CFP would tell you or me if asked.
Add one more thing into the mix of this conversation: Buying cars on credit and paying interest assumes three important things that simply cannot be assumed in my mind at my ripe old age of 42:
1. One's annual income level will remain the same and/or increase over time.
We can work hard to keep our jobs and make more money, but alas, excellent employees lose their jobs every day! Finding another can often take months or longer. If his or her car is paid for, it's one less thing they'll have to be concerned about losing should their savings run dry.
2. One's health, and the health of his or her family will remain excellent during the duration of the loan period.
We can eat lots of fruits and veggies, lay off the red meat, jog three miles each morning and still contract cancer and see our life savings wiped out due to the crappy insurance we are all forced to endure in the USA. Few employers have excellent health coverage any more and the overage payments for a catastrophic illness in one's family can easily exceed $50k. Being out of car debt would go a long way toward making those medical payments.
3. One's current investments will not tank and be worth far more in the years to come.
The financial climate has changed. Modest gains can be had if invested wisely, but truth be told, the old addage of not counting ones' chickens until they're hatched is still true.
By no means am I trying to be arguementative, but losing sleep, developing ulcers, arguing with one's spouse over spent-money issues because the spreadsheets and possible interest gained did not pan out, and assumes one will follow through and invest what has been borrowed to fulfill the scenario you've laid out.
The interest charged on the loan, however, is guaranteed to be charged to the payee.
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