I'm only commenting on the high mileage vehicle part, I agree with you on the rest of it. I drove my car to just under 180,000 miles and the last 20,000 miles were an agonizing money pit as I was constantly making repairs (myself, not taking it to a shop). Just when I would start to get ahead money-wise, something would wear out and break down. It was frustrating. So, finally, when I had just enough money to justify buying a (new to me) used car with one sixth as many miles, I did. And it's been bliss ever since.

Point is, driving a car into the upper limits of it's serviceable life is good if it doesn't constantly cost you money to keep it running. But some people need their car just so they can get to work. I did. And I had to live with that for a couple of years longer than I would've liked to, but patience paid off... I hope.