My first new car was a 1972 Pinto - $2,200 out the door.
Next was a 1975 Datsun 280Z - $65000 out the door.
Then a 1978 Farimont V-8 loaded - somewhere around $5000 ou the door
I don't think I topped $10k until I bought an F150 in 1992.
The biggest jump was when I bought an Explorer in 1996 - and that one was
over $26K.
On the other hand I bought a 2006 Mustang for my son for around $15k and
even though it is only a V6, it has at least as good performance as mid-90's
Mustang V8s.

Ed