Okay, but no. What kind of car should *I* buy?

[orthodoc]

Gee, tw, could you be any more of an asshole? 'A cash flow problem makes poor decisions necessary.' No. A cash flow problem mandates certain decisions/approaches that you obviously have no experience with. Lucky you. I had a cash flow problem in university: I had no money to pay my rent. Not my fault. My parents, who had sufficient income, chose to spend it on other things, and I didn't qualify for loans.

Did I make 'poor' decisions? No, I made the ones that let me survive. Others have explained the upside of being able to budget for a monthly expense rather than an enormous, unexpected repair bill. To forgo the supplemental warranty and bet that nothing will happen until enough money is put aside to cover a huge repair expense is not rational. That expense is as likely to happen soon as later. Your argument is moot.

But I refuse to play by your 'rules'. You are also an asshole. You clearly don't care, but don't accuse others of being 'emotional' or less than adult to cover up your own deficiencies of thought and experience.