I'm not going to lie, I finance my stuff. The initial build, that is. Any upgrading, or extras are out of pocket. The current buggy project is probably 80-90% financed, on a loan that I took out against my tow rig. Part of "how did you buy this?" is knowing the right people. A friend of mine is building my chassis for free and we are splitting the rest of the work. I just happen to have a friend that wants to get his fabrication business going, and needs somebody who is willing to pay for the parts, so that he can build a flagship buggy. We just happen to have interests that are conducive to helping each other reach our respective goals; and a genuine friendship, which means we know that one of us won't screw the other one over.
But if I didn't do this, I would be out of the game for the next 5 years, just saving money and popping Tums (because I'd be so stressed from not wheeling that my heartburn would be never-ending). I have lost a lot of friends and family to deaths of various sorts, so I have a firm grasp on the fact that I may not be around on this Earth for as long as I plan to be. So in the mean time, I will finance my toys just for the simple fact that I would otherwise not be able to own them. And the things that I do with my toys is what makes me who I am, thereby making them a high priority. I believe the things that I am passionate about are the reason that I am on Earth.
I understand the whole "pay cash for everything" mentality, and I wish I had the patience and self control to do it; alas, I do not. However, I WAS able to get ALL the way through college with ZERO loans, and only needed to "borrow" money from my parents for the very last semester. So I guess it could be worse...