In terms of CPU, GPU, thermal systems, PSU... yes computing people do whip out a lot of numbers. But when buying a laptop, assembling a gig, we consider of the overall experience, more abstracts and qualitative measurements: ease of maintenance, aesthetics even.
On the other hand, car guys do get nerdy on number crunching when they tune their turbo/ exhaust system, IE: optimizing a very specific component of the system.
I personally am way more interested in computers than cars, but I do feel that cars are more "emotional" possessions than computers. some laptops are ugly and made out of plastic, while others can be quite attractive, but my selection strategy is always to filter out the downright ugly machines and then compare the others component by component. my process for cars is pretty much the reverse; I want one that exceeds some bar for performance and then I will pick the one that feels best to drive around.
my car is far from the fastest in its category or price segment, but imo it is definitely the most pleasant to drive. my desktop is a bunch of high end parts inside an ugly leet gamer case that I bought ten years ago.