<prompt> Human: For years I have read on reddit that no one should ever buy a new car. I generally subscribe to that thought, but I bought a new car anyway. Heres why it doesnt matter and my budget wasnt impacted.My car was in a crash and totaled. I needed a new car now and couldnt wait. I have children so I needed something large enough for them and all their junk. I also liked a 2018 model year that was a new redesign of a model - I did not like the older body style. Normally I would wait one year and buy a one-year-old version of the new body style but I just couldnt in this situation.I took my insurance check, put that down as the down payment on my new car, and financed the rest at 2.5. My previous car payment was about 260month and the new car payment is about 260month. There is little month-to-month budget impact.Could I have purchased something cheaper and not gotten a loan for the portion insurance didnt cover? Yes, but I didnt like those cars. Is car debt a bad debt? Yes, but my family can afford it while still maxing out a Roth IRA and 20 into a 401k plan at work.Why dont I pay off the car an invest the difference? Thats exactly what I did. I bought the car with cash and immediately went to my local bank and got a loan. I then took that loan and immediately put it into my brokerage account. I am willing to risk 1,168 in interest payments because I think I can make more than that in the market over the 5 year loan. The loan will more than pay for itself in a preferred stock paying out 3 or more. If cash-flow does become an issue I can sell those stocks and pay off the loan.So reddit, I am here to tell some of you the world does not end when you buy a brand new car.  <response>: I had extra money in my budget after comfortably meeting my financial needs, so I spent an amount that fit in my budget on something I wanted. Of course that worked out... Thats how personal finance works. The vast majority of people who post here about should I buy a new car and get doom and gloom are trying to justify a new car payment while ignoring high interest debt, not saving for retirement, still want to spend all of their discretionary income on other things, because they want more than they can afford and see debt as the way to have it all. 