[86boyAF1]

Originally Posted by ft86fanatic76

just because you HAVE (note, i said have, and not own,) a nice car (ft-86) or a nice expensive car, such as a BMW or Benz, doesnt mean you own the car, and that you are rich. ive seen people working at low minimum wage jobs, on welfare and still be able to LEASE or FINANCE an expensive car. these people are TOOLs. i cant tell you how many times ive seen people on the road driving expensive cars and they live in a crappy broken down house, behind on credit card bills, and not being able to afford food. if you want to be a TRUE owner of a nice car, then you have to be able to pay it off 100% on the same day. if i see someone a young person at a car meet, with a brand new expensive car, i will flat out ask them if they paid it off 100%. and i will know you are BS'ing me if you say yes... pretending to be rich doesnt make you "cool", it makes you look pathetic. just FYI.....

Without the invention of credit and financing the auto industry would have never got off its feet. While I agree that a person should be able to put down a significant portion of the car's cost, and payments should not be more than 10% of monthly income, I don't think the ability to pay off a car 100% is needed. Unless you are talking about total worth of a person's assets, including 401ks and other long term savings.