How rich do you need to be to afford the new Ford GT supercar?

Ford showed off its first new GT model since 2005 at the 2015 Auto Show in Detroit. The new Ford GT supercar now comes equipped a with 600-horsepower EcoBoost V-6 engine and is perhaps $100,000 more than its predecessor. 

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The Grand Rapids Press, Tanya Moutzalia
Ford unveiled the new Ford GT on Monday, a super car that will go into production next year, at the North American International Auto Show in a special unveiling inside Joe Louis Arena Downtown Detroit.

At the 2015 Detroit Auto Show, Ford went for the gold – both in honors and price tags.

Its new Ford F-150 won the North American Truck/Utility of the Year award, and the company was runner-up for the North American Car of the year with its Mustang, which lost to the Volkswagen Golf.

But the golden child of the show was the new Ford GT, which had been a mere rumor for months.

The verdict: It was worth the wait – and possibly even the price tag.

In time for the 50th anniversary of the original GT40 winning the LeMans races, the new GT is all about flash. The machine has a 600-horsepower EcoBoost V-6 engine and is no gas sipper. The sleek, “futuristic” body is made completely of carbon fiber, which posed a huge engineering challenge. CNET quoted the car’s creator and Ford vice president of design, Moray Callum, as saying, “We wouldn't have been able to build [this] car 60 years ago. Even 20 years ago.”

Naturally, the first question on many people's minds was "how much?" But the automaker was tight lipped, only offering clues to the retail value. Ford pointed to its competitors, the Lamborghini’s Huracan (approximately $237,000), Ferrari’s 458 Speciale (approximately $298,000), and McLaren’s 650S (approximately $265,000), as reference points for price, leaving many to speculate that the cost could be as high as $250,000.

This is a huge leap in price from the last time Ford unveiled the GT. The 2005-2006 GT retro special retailed for around $150,000 when it went on sale (approximately $180,000 today). Autoweek speculates that if the price of the new GT falls closer to $200,000 while “boasting the latest in modern performance car technology,” there’s a good chance that Ford will do something it failed to with the 2005-2006 model: sell the entire planned production run.

Before you go breaking open your piggy bank though, Go Banking Rates did the math for how this luxury supercar will affect your finances.

Using the TimeValue calculator, the site calculated that a five-year loan on a $250,000 car "would cost the borrower about $3,600 every month.” Translation: If you set aside one-third of your income toward paying down this car, you would need to make at least $129,600 a year to afford your dream car.

But as Ford reps went on to say, this car is not for the average consumer. The car industry believes the motorheads are ready to drop a pretty penny on its new design.

"A lot of people talk about technology and there's so much talk about autonomous cars and hybrid cars and maybe cars that are not for enthusiasts,” Mr. Callum told CNET. “We wanted to bring some of that back, to say that innovation can be about traditional car guys.... Performance is still a great platform to develop technology and innovation."

Start saving enthusiasts, the new GT will be out as early as next year.

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