After watching this thread for a few weeks I must jump in.
First, the only part of the original buyer's profile guess that was remotely close to me was income and level of education (I guess job level, too, as I'm the equivalent of a "manager of section"). I didn't pay $220,000, I paid exactly MSRP, though I know it was only my connections at Ford that made that happen. I was born three months AFTER the last time the original GT40 won Le Mans, so I'm not the guy who fell in love with this car when he was between 6 and 20, and now can finally buy his own version (I fell in love with what this car represents about 10 years ago, when I finally researched all the hype surrounding this whole "GT40 thing" I had been hearing about for years).
I guess I'm also male and live in the Southwest, so that's close. Does owning a 1973 Saab Sonett count as already owning 2 sports cars? In my opinion it shouldn't. :lol I did finance part of the car's ownership, but only because I got a screaming rate from my credit union and can do better with the money in investments -- not that I have a huge porfolio.
I was at Crystal Cruisers car cruise (in Orange County near PCH) a few months back and a guy came up and started wanting to sell me some membership in a car detailing program. All I could think was, "Why would I pay someone else to regularly detail my car? That's one of my favorite parts of owning it. Oh wait, this is one of those people that assumes I am 'rich' because I bought this car." For me, the worst part of owning the GT is the inaccurate message it sends to other people regarding my income level, but I love the car too much to really care much about that.
So, in regards to the idea that exotic car marketers know their market, I'm sure they would be totally off with me. But I don't use the term "rich" lightly, because as tough as it is for me to fathom making millions of dollars a year I also know it is difficult for many people in this country to imaging making over six figures a year. I know this because up until about the year 2000 it was difficult for ME to imagine making $100,000-plus a year. And now I'm sure many people would look at my situation and consider me "rich."
Whether I'm "rich" or not is immaterial, I've worked very hard and caught some good breaks so here I am. I suspect many others in the forum, regardless of their income level, would use the same terms to describe their situation. The best part is that now I've fully embraced the "anything is possible" aspect of life, and thus I no longer assume I won't get to the "million-dollar" level some day. And as some of you probably know, getting to that mindset can be the toughest challenge we all face.
BTW, love the purple R/T. I also have a 1970 Plymouth GTX with a numbers-matching 440 and Air Grabber hood in "Burnt Orange" metallic (FK5 for the Mopar freaks). I got this car from the second owner when I was a junior in high school. It was essentially in mint condition with 84,000 miles on the odometer -- for $4,000. Funny thing is, now when I drive that car it also gives people the wrong idea about my income level. :rofl
