When Carrie Underwood won American Idol season 4 in 2005, the show gifted her with a blue Ford Mustang convertible, and she revealed that she still drives the car today. When Carrie won, she took home a recording contract worth at least a million dollars, the use of a private jet for a year, and the car. Ford was one of the sponsors of the show at the time, and the contestants starred in commercials for the brand that featured them singing with the cars. Carrie went on to become one of country music's biggest superstars and one of the most successful American Idol finalists in the history of the show.
On American Idol's Carrie Underwood shared that she not only still has the Ford Mustang Convertible, but she even drives it occasionally. When discussing her new single, "Out of that Truck," a song about how a vehicle holds so many memories, Carrie listed the Mustang as a car that has special meaning to her. She said, "I do still have the car that I won when I won American Idol. So I have my blue Mustang."
Carrie Underwood Enjoys Driving Her American Idol Prize Mustang
Carrie explained that if her current car is getting serviced, she drives the Mustang, "and it always makes me want to drive it more, because it was such a pivotal point in my life." The former American Idol contestant gushed, "That was the car that I was driving around when I first moved to Tennessee, and I’m very, very glad I still have that car." Carrie said that every time she drives it she wonders why she doesn't do it more often because "it makes me feel good." She added that she most likely listened to mixes for her first record on CD in that car.
American Idol gifted Carrie and runner-up Bo Bice with matching Ford Mustangs during the show's finale. Their season aired during the heyday of the show. Approximately 500 million votes were cast throughout the season, and 37 million votes were counted during the finale. After Carrie's now-legendary performance of Heart's "Alone," judge Simon Cowell predicted that not only would she win American Idol, but she would sell more records than any other previous winner.
Since winning American Idol 15 years ago, Carrie has had so much success. She has sold more than 66 million records worldwide and released 28 number one singles, of which she co-wrote 14. She has seven albums that are certified multi-platinum or platinum by the RIAA. Carrie has won eight Grammy Awards, 16 ACM Awards, 25 CMT Music Awards (a record for the show), 7 CMA Awards, and 17 American Music Awards. She is also an actress and author. The fact that Carrie still has her Ford Mustang after all of these years and successes is a testament to the humble and thankful person she has always been since American Idol.
Source: Today's Country Radio With Kelleigh Bannen, maychen/YouTube