Here are a couple ideas I didn't see mentioned. They might be just a bit out of your price range, but who knows you might come across a deal in your area.

The Suzuki SX4. Economical and fun to drive. Although given the incident you mentioned it sounds like you want something bigger.

Although the AWD versions are pretty rare, how about the Dodge Magnum? The 1st year with the AWD option was 2005 and it could be had in the SXT w/ 3.5L V6 or the R/T w/ 340hp Hemi V8. All the AWD cars got the better Mercedes 5spd transmission. The SXT is probably your only chance, most of the Hemi cars go for like $12k and up.

The last one I'll mention is the Ford Freestyle. I believe it's basically a Volvo platform and AWD system done up to Ford's specs. It would be a challenge to find one of these for $8000 but IMHO it would be a killer deal at that price. I got a chance to take a short trip in one and I was impressed with it.