Best used car for about 7 to 8 thousand dollars?

I don’t put a lot of faith in consumer magazines and surveys as there is just too much of an opportunity for bias to exist.
The Taurus/Sable cars are a good option. The Sable I had was still running/driving well when I sold it 2 years ago and it had 420k miles on it.

That being said, a used car is a used car and a lot depends on how it was driven and maintained by the previous owner. A thorough checkover and a lengthy test drive always helps.