Woman who won brand-new car on Wheel of Fortune learned unexpected lesson as soon as cameras stopped rolling
Published on Feb 13, 2026 at 3:17 PM (UTC+4)
by Henry Kelsall
Last updated on Feb 13, 2026 at 3:17 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Amelia Jean Hershman-Jones
A woman who won a brand-new car on the game show Wheel of Fortune had a surprise lesson once the cameras on the show had stopped rolling.
Wheel of Fortune is one of the most famous game shows ever to air, and a Reddit thread asked what people really won on game shows and how it helped them.
One user left an interesting comment, describing how their mum went on Wheel of Fortune and won the vehicle.
While she did get the prize, there are a few interesting things they don’t tell you about if you win.
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What car did the woman win on Wheel of Fortune?
According to user Lord_Metagross, their mom managed to get on and win the show.
She won an all-expenses-paid trip abroad, and at the time, a brand-new Infiniti luxury vehicle.
There was also $25,000 in cash that she won on Wheel of Fortune.
However, there were a few hidden costs that she had to pay.
She had to pay tax on the car up front, which amounted to several thousand dollars.
Then she had to take out a short-term loan, using the car as collateral, to pay the tax.
What she then did was sell the vehicle and pay off the loan before keeping the difference.
That perhaps wasn’t what she had expected.
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Income from game shows is heavily taxed
What she didn’t realize when she won was how heavily taxed game show income was.
It turned out that the money only kept a few grand from the $25,000 that she had won.
They did reveal, however, that she was able to keep most of the money from selling the car.
Plus, the trip abroad was legit, and she did get spending cash for when she was on holiday.
The Reddit user also said their mom used the money to pay off some debts.
Comment
by u/mdd2525 from discussion
in AskReddit
But after the show, she lived the same life she had lived prior.
As we covered regarding the Oprah Pontiac G6 giveaway, winning on a game show isn’t always what it seems.
Hidden taxes and other complications can ruin the fun of winning a prize.
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Henry joined the Supercar Blondie team in February 2025, and since then has covered a wide array of topics ranging from EVs, American barn finds, and the odd Cold War jet. He’s combined his passion for cars with his keen interest in motorsport and his side hustle as a volunteer steam locomotive fireman at a leading heritage steam railway in England.
