<prompt> Human: OK, so when people ask me about why anyone would ever want to get a loan on a depreciating asset like a car I tell them that its because they can take the cash that they didnt spend on a car and invest it into something that gives returns greater than the finance charge on the car loan.x200B;However, I decided to start looking at rates because my wifes Fiesta is a grinding time bomb and these days it seems most lenders are teetering around 3.5-4.5, especially if you want a 48 or 60mo loan. At the same time, Im wondering if the market is going to be able to keep giving double-digit returns in the next 3-5 years - what with tariffs, trade wars, rising benchmark rates, and the possibility of Trump vs. Congress duking it out in the near future.x200B;If I discount the option of buying a cheaper used car in cash, how do you guys feel about buying a car in cash vs. financing and investing in todays environment?  <response>: Thats going to require math to figure that out... Suppose you have 20k to put down on a car. But instead of buying outright you put 5k down and invest 15k. You finance at 3 for 3 years. Your average rate of return is 6-8, granted thats long term not 3 years. But for sake of the argument lets say you get 6 on your investment over those 3 years. In this scenario you would have net 3. Thus it would have been wiser to finance rather than pay cash. x200B;HOWEVER... Theres a lot of assumptions. During that time you very easily could have only got 2 return, those causing you to lose money. Then paying cash would be better. Its a risk. x200B;I have done this. Albeit not with a 20k loan. But I did finance 8k at 3 and then dumped the money That I had saved for a car into my wife and Is ROTH IRAs. 