Woman who was gifted free car by Oprah still drives it to this day

Over 15 years after being gifted a free Volkswagen Beetle by Oprah Winfrey, one woman has revealed that it’s still her daily driver.

The Beetle is one of the most timeless cars ever made, not looking out of place in either 2025 or 1925, making it one of the most vintage models in the industry – especially in Europe.

But when you get one from Oprah, you better believe that it’s going to last the long haul.

Just as Chicago local Candi Davis proved, she has been sporting her VW Beetle every day since the plucky beauty was delivered to her doorstep in 2011.

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One of the Oprah Winfrey giveaway winners still drives her Beetle every day

Oprah ‘You-Get-A-Car’ Winfrey is renowned for her generosity, gifting audience members countless sets of wheels over the years of hosting her own show.

In fact, she only has half a moment to enjoy her own collection before dishing out new keys to new, fortunate people.

Having started the trend with the iconic Pontiac giveaway in 2004, she soon went on to give her entire audience a Volkswagen Beetle each in 2011.

One of those audience members, Candi Davis, still owns the car and has even revealed that she stays in contact with over 100 of the other guests through a WhatsApp group.

Having previously opened up about the process on social media, Davis has appeared on TODAY Australia to say that she still owns the car and drives it every day.

“I still own it,” she began.

“Because it was a gift, and because every day that I drive this car, someone stops and tells me that’s a really good looking car, and then I get the chance to say, ‘hey, I have a really cool story about it’.”

The Beetle was given to Davis in 2011, a year after the show aired, as the giveaway was for the 2012 model, which Volkswagen had not yet given out.

But it’s safe to say that she loves it.

What happens when the cameras stop?

Famously, the original blockbuster Pontiac giveaway was riddled with controversy, as The Oprah Winfrey Show hit the 276 winners with $6-7k fees to own the new cars.

But the devastating reality of that giveaway was seemingly long forgotten as Oprah Winfrey helped the audience with their tax forms and gave them words of love.

“When it was all over and the cameras actually were finished rolling for the day and we were done filming, we had some downtime because we each had to go meet with attorneys to talk about tax forms and stuff like that,” Candi continued.

“She could see we were all dealing with this, so she stayed with us for a while, and that was probably the most beautiful part of the day.

“She told us all just to take these presents we were given and accept them and feel worthy of them, and not to feel bad. Actually, she said one thing that most of us printed out. She said: ‘This day is not about the stuff, it’s about hope and knowing that something magical and wonderful and joyful can happen to you when you least expect’.”

Nowadays, giveaways are much easier, and content creators like MrBeast have found ways around their audiences being charged or hit with heavy tax rebates.

For Candi, this Beetle is a wholesome slice of history, and it’s great that Oprah could continue to give her audience these memories after the Pontiac debacle.

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