re: How bad of an idea is it to buy a new car?

The major reason most cars depreciate so quickly in the first 2-3 years is that many people expect that something must be wrong with the vehicle if you are willing to sell that quickly. Believe it or not, a Nobel Prize was awarded for a paper exploring this concept, although I personally suspect it could be updated since info is more easily obtainable and used car dealers are more accountable today.

It's usually a very bad idea to buy new with the intention of trading it in 2-3 years later and repeating the process. But it can be perfectly fine to buy new if you plan to drive it into the ground for the next 10 years and 200k miles.