Honestly, if someone came to either one of us with $30k in hand and wanted to buy a $30k car I'd tell them not to spend every dime they had on a car. I'm guessing you'd probably do the same thing. Personally I would tell them to spend $5-10k on a used car and take the rest to save/invest depending on their personal needs. Sadly, if you're looking at short term investments now, you're not going to get much more than 2-3% if you're really, really lucky.
Depends on the car. A used car might initially cost you less but unless you know a good mechanic or you know all about your car, repair costs can be high. Consider the cost of replacing a transfer case or perhaps an entire engine or the wiring harness and that bargain used car becomes a terrible deal. Sometimes, you are forced into professional repairs because you cannot handle the job yourself.
I know cars but I would never try to fix a new one. I once spent a week trying to locate a wiring problem with my Opel GT. Turned out to be a bad fusible link. The previous owner added one to some wiring that ran under the engine. Another time, my Oldsmobile Cutlass would not start. Had I taken it to a shop, I would have spent a fortune trying to find out what was up. The problem was a $125.00 anti-rollover switch buried in the trunk. I cut the wires and soldered them together because I was not about to spend $125.00 on a new one. Plus labor costs.
I'll likely never purchase a modern vehicle. Anything after 1970 or so is not for me. Can't really compare new/original costs to current values because in the market I am interested in, the costs have gone way, way up. Same with vintage bikes.
Purchase a used Hybrid Droid Zio GT with the 454 and four on the floor for $12,000 rather a new one for $24,000 and when the engine goes bad and it must be replaced, you would probably have been better off to purchase new with a warranty that will also cover starter motors, transmission and other stuff.
Sometimes a five thousand dollar car becomes either a $12,000.00 repair job agonizingly stretched over the long term or a great deal. Saw that with a friend that bought the worlds most costly Hummer. A used POS that sucked money faster than he could make it. Depends on the car and your knowledge. Incidentally, a new car can be a bag of crap, too. Consider the costs of replacement batteries for hybrid cars. From one to six grand. So a used car becomes a expensive one if the batteries are replaced.
I can fix my cars. No problem too big to handle. I cannot repair a new car because it requires tools I refuse to purchase.
What cars actually cost is important to me right now because I my next one will cost me far more than most here will consider reasonable and so I'll not say. I will know exactly what it costs me; its maintenance costs, gas costs, oil costs, insurance. Then and only then will I know how to handle financing.
When you make a big purchase, run the numbers and you will know if a good deal is indeed a good deal.
I found this: "Tesla Motors
