Probably a class issue here in the UK,its an old cliche but my previous business partner always lived by the dictat if you want to fly it,float it or f K it rent it and I think you can also extend that to high end cars now, let the experts worry about the depreciation. MY2011 HSE Santorini/Ivory/Piano Black/Privacy Glass/TV .Sadly gone.
Audi A5 Sportback Black Edition 3.0 tdi quattro S Line

RRS Boy your argument is perfectly correct assuming you are in the fortunate position to be able to make a cash purchase. The culture in the USA regarding cars is that you rent something you can't afford to purchase outright. I know people who could purchase outright but still rent as they prefer to retain their cash so if needed they can service their debts in case of unforeseen circumstances without having to sell the car / make changes to their lifestyles etc.
Rightly or wrongly this aspirational culture has spread to the UK hence why PCPs etc are gaining popularity.
My car is funded by a low cost PCP as I view it as my company car and the expenses for travel cover the payments. Personally I would rather invest into my pension plan (deeply uncool for a man in his mid 30's i know) with my cash and accept the interest payments on the car loan.

Hopefully at some point in the future I will have sufficient funds extracted from the company to make an outright purchase as this is the cheapest way, albeit with you assuming all the risks re depreciation etc