After reading these forums I sold my SUV and bought a used smaller car and invested the difference ($7,500).
What you need to realize is that you lose in multiple ways with a relatively expensive car bought with a loan - depreciation, interest payments, higher insurance costs, and perhaps most importantly on the lost investment revenue that compounds over years.
If you sold the $26,000 car for even $15,000 and bought a $10,000 used car - that is $5,000 you can immediately invest. Over 10 years with compounding that amounts to $8,144 assuming a 5% net return.
Of course if you already have a sizable investment portfolio and no other debts and a good income then you might be ok with keeping the car.