Woman who won a free car on Let's Make A Deal reveals what really happened after the cameras stopped rolling
Published on Jul 23, 2025 at 3:22 PM (UTC+4)
by Henry Kelsall
Last updated on Jul 23, 2025 at 9:20 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Kate Bain
A woman who won a free car on ‘Let’s Make A Deal’ has revealed what really happened with her Kia after the cameras stopped rolling.
Nicole Fong posted about her experience in a blog post after winning a Kia on the popular TV game show.
The expectation was that winners would get their prizes not long after the show finished filming.
Unfortunately, that wasn’t her experience.
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How Nicole Fong won a free car on the game show
In her blog post, Nicole explained how she won it after throwing a tiny ball into a tiny cup.
“I just won a CAR by throwing a tiny ball into a tiny cup. How did this happen?! It’s crazy talk!” she said on the blog.

Nicole also explained that she felt self-conscious and almost embarrassed by what had just happened to her.
After the show, she went to an office.
This is where she had to fill in a lot of paperwork to confirm a few things.
The episode itself was taped in September 2014, with it airing at the end of January 2015.
However, it was even more time before Nicle got her hands on the car itself.
It took months before Nicole received her Kia
According to her blog post, it wasn’t until March 2015 that she could finally call the prize her own.
That is two months on from the airing of the episode, and six months on from when she won the car on the game show.
She also said she had to pay taxes on the car, license, and registration, and additional taxes on her prize winnings.

So it wasn’t a free car at all that she won on Let’s Make A Deal.
But she acknowledges it was a brand new car for the price of a used one.
Despite the cost and the wait, Nicole did keep the car, given that it was cheaper than buying one brand new.
But her ordeal showed that what you see on game shows isn’t necessarily the truth.
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Henry is a content writer with nearly ten years experience, having written for various publications since 2017. Qualifying with a Sports Journalism degree from Staffordshire University, Henry loves all things automotive but has a particular soft spot for classic Japanese cars and anything Lancia. He also has a curious passion for steam locomotives.