Well, I bought one because I had a major accident where someone was hurt, and I got sued. I probably had a touch of PTSD and was having panic attacks while driving, but I was living and working in a place that I needed a car. I was a grad student and adjuncting at multiple campuses, so I had to have a car. The insurance only paid for the rental for a week.

So, I told my mom that I was thinking about getting a car for a couple thousand, and she absolutely hit the ceiling. I lived by myself on the other side of the country. If I got into an accident, there was no family I could call to help me.

So I went looking for a used car. It was awful. Folks at car dealership are often incentivized to be awful. I brought a white friend along ,and she witness the like obvious racism and ugliness. She got upset, and I ended up trying to make her feel better.

Anyway, after all of that I ended up looking at a new version of the car that I wrecked. The dealer was nice to me. The car came with like 3 years of everything, 3 years of internet, 3 years of OnStar, 3 years of XM radio, and, most importantly 3 years of warranty, so any problems I had on the road, I could push the button, and they would come tow the car to the dealership who would give me a loaner to get me back on the road while they fixed it for free. If I got in an accident, OnStar would call emergency services for me.

The car also has airbags everywhere. It has a backup camera, and it beeps when I am getting close to backing into something. It has the thing that if somebody steals it they can stop it. And if I lock my keys in it, I can open it on the app with my smartphone.

It was about as worry free as I could (at that time) possibly afford. I got a 2% rate for 6 years. I bought an extended warranty on it (probably the only part I might not do again). At the end I paid $23k.

When I paid it off it became the only asset I have ever owned. And in the meantime, it kept me as safe as I could afford.

Years later I found out that I am autistic, which is why I had the original accident and why I am actually significantly safer with these features. A lot of autistic folks don't drive at all. We often have issues with spatial awareness that makes it an extremely difficult task to accomplish. That was 2016. I haven't had an accident bad enough to involve insurance since. In 2026, I will likely buy another new car. Just the impact on my anxiety alone makes it safer for me and also for other drivers on the road.