Audi stepped up to right what many viewers saw as the contestant being cheated out of her prize.
Wheel of Fortune contestant Charlene ended up getting her Audi after some fans were outraged on her behalf. Charlene made headlines in December when she missed out on a new Audi due to a timing rule on the longtime game show that many were unaware of.
Charlene made it to the final round of her episode, where the category was "What are you doing?" Though she at first guessed a wrong answer -- "choosing the right card" -- she eventually said the right phrase, which was "choosing the right word." However, host Pat Sajak said that because she paused too long in between guesses, she would not get the prize, which was an Audi Q3.
"This one's tough because you said all the right words, including the word 'word' but as you know, it's got to be more or less continuous," Sajak said. "We'll allow for a little pause but not four or five seconds. I'm sorry, you did a good job in getting it, but we can't give you the prize and it was the Audi."
Plenty of viewers were not happy with the decision.
"Come on @WheelofFortune, the woman literally chose the right word. Give her the car," Jeopardy! champion Alex Jacob tweeted.
Another tweet reads, "She was right! For Pete's sake, #WheelofFortune — make it right. Some of us who have been watching you for decades are DISGUSTED!"
"That lady was ROBBED!" another tweet reads. "Solved the final puzzle with seconds on the clock. Even Vanna [White] looked unsure of Pat's BS rule. #WheelofFortune."
Some criticized the ABC show for having hidden rules.
"Okay, Sajak is just making stuff up now," one tweet reads. "She got the answer RIGHT. "Choosing the right... [pause]... word". That was the answer, and she said it in time. "Nope. You can pause, but that pause was too long..." WHAT?? Where in the rules is the maximum pause defined?"
But while Charlene may have not won the car, Audi wanted to give it to her on their own. The company tweeted shortly after the episode, "You're a winner in our eyes, Charlene. Now, let's get you a prize. Time to #GiveHerTheQ3."
They followed up with, "There's no community like the Audi community. With your help, we tracked down Charlene! More to come as we help #GiveHerTheQ3."
On Thursday, Audi tweeted a photo of Charlene with her new car topped with a big red bow and beaming while holding up the car keys.
"You all did it! You helped #GiveHerTheQ3," Audi tweeted, referring to the campaign to give Charlene the car many Wheel of Fortune viewers felt she deserved. "Charlene, welcome to the Audi family! We are so happy to see you in the driver seat."
ET spoke with both Sajak and his TV partner, Vanna White, in September, and he talked about how much longer he plans to host the iconic game show.
"We're certainly closer to the end than the beginning," Sajak, 74, candidly shared. "I'd like to leave before people tune in and look at me and say, 'Ooh, what happened to him?'"
"I wouldn't bet on seeing us in, like, 10 years, I would say," he added.
White agreed and noted, "We've been together for like 38 years and he's like my brother. He's funny. I mean, we could finish each other's sentences if we wanted to. We know each other that well."
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