Audi giving ‘Wheel of Fortune’ contestant a car after she loses on a technicality

ABC/Eric McCandless

A Wheel of Fortune contestant who lost out on a new car because of a technicality will be getting that new car after all, thanks to Audi.

Fans of the game show rallied in support of Charlene Rubush after Tuesday’s episode. She had solved the puzzle — correctly guessing the phrase “choosing the right word,” but she paused before saying “word” just before the buzzer went off.

“You know, this one’s tough, because you said all the right words, including the word ‘word’ but, as you know, it’s gotta be more or less continuous,” host Pat Sajak told her.

He added, “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.”

After fan outcry online demanding the show give her the prize anyway, Audi swooped in to make Charlene’s holiday merry.

“You’re a winner in our eyes, Charlene. Now, let’s get you a prize. Time to #GiveHerTheQ3,” the car company tweeted.

Audi later added that they had found Charlene and were working on getting her that car: “There’s no community like the Audi community. With your help, we tracked down Charlene! More to come as we help.”

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