If you want to buy used car, buy American cars first. they are much cheaper than Japanese used cars. If you buy a new car, there is no difference between American car and Japanese car. But right now, some American cars are sold at very good price, such as Ford Fusion, Ford Focus, Chev Mailbu,etc... You can use this amount of money to buy brand new Ford Focus, Chev Cabalt, Toyota Corola, Honda Civic.