There's another dimension, too. Your options aren't just spend $X on a new car or $X-N on a used one--you can also spend $X on either a new one or a used one. However you spend your money, you could feel like you're missing out if you're inclined that way (and objectively, of course you're missing out on an uncountable number of other uses of it), but I think most people would prefer having a better car and making a better financial investment (guaranteed negative return either way, but less so with the used car) to whatever good feelings they get from being the first owner, though there's nothing wrong with being unusual in that area.
Fair enough. But a good question people en masse are forgetting to ask themselves is, 'What am I using this for?' What do I
need?
I am not saying the people should forego getting things they want. But they should only acquire things they want if there is something left over
after they have addressed their needs.
Too many people today, people of ALL ages, are not able to correctly differentiate needs from wants.
You do
need to save money for retirement, and for a rainy day. And a person may
need a car to get to work. But if the fact that you have bought a $40,000 car to get to work, which you don't need, means you are not saving anything for retirement or a rainy day, which you do, you are doing it wrong.
A person may suggest they need coffee. And perhaps they are addicted to caffeine and do need it ( I know I am). But what they need is caffeine, not $50.00 a month of caffeine or more at Starbucks. They
want Starbucks. But if they are driving their 40K car to Starbucks to get coffee on their way to work, not saving for retirement, and don't have a grain of coffee grounds in their house, again, I posit they are doing it wrong.
And even within the smaller realm of wants, there are degrees of recklessness. A person definitely does not need to get drunk, but they may really want to. And even if they make the poor choice to address that want before their needs, there are degrees to how poorly they might do that. After the very affordable coffee they brewed at home and took to work in their 2009 For Fusion they bought for $4500, they could swing by the liquor store on the way home and buy a 12 pack or some booze for cocktails on their way home. Get a nice little buzz going, then catch a ride to the bar and coast it on out with a libation or 2.