Like the title says, wife and I are trying to buy a car for $3000 or less, and I am wanting to get some opinions. I have the 4chan Autos car infographic, and I am keeping an eye out for those cars, but does anyone have any suggestions not on the list?

Also, another question: Wife and I went to look at a car (dodgy during a pandemic, I know, but we are borrowing a car atm and can't keep doing it much longer, then things are going to get *REAL*) yesterday and it seemed solid but later I had some misgivings. It was a 2003 Toyota Matrix (a runner up on the infographic *and* a Toyota) with 116k miles and some minor body damage (few dings that took paint off, minor rust easily repaired) and the seller said it was MD inspected. Well, judging by the headlights, which are so cloudy you'd probably need high beams just to see at night, I highly doubt it passed state inspection. Also, he told us the inspection was good for 6 months, but I know that it is only good for 90 days. That second one is minor, but those two things and the generally shifty nature of the establishment gave me pause. Wife loves the car, and Glob knows I wanna give her what she wants, but we've had a run of bad luck on cars lately so I need to get this right.

Should I trust this guy or move on?