A good rule of thumb is to keep your car payment below 10% of your take home income. $290/month comes out to about a $15k loan at your interest rates. Also keep in mind that a newer vehicle will be more expensive to insure.

I would spend a few months saving up until you have ~$5k or so to put down, then look at cars in the $15k neighborhood. Then you’ll have a car that you can easily afford, not just one that you can theoretically afford.