After buying a brand-new Hyundai Sonata, a woman found an invoice inside that she believes the dealership left behind accidentally. She is taking it as proof of her dealmaking skills.

TikTok user Jewell (@coachmejewell) posted a video with her discovery on July 23. In the video, she reveals that she was initially told the 2025 Hyundai Sonata cost $32,000. Ultimately, she left the dealership having agreed to pay $28,500 after taxes and fees.

When she got in the vehicle, she found a piece of paper that listed the price as $28,410. She assumed the document listed the invoice price.

She was thrilled. “That means they only made $90 on this sale,” she says.

What This Tells Her About the Car Buying Process

That leads Jewell to believe that car dealerships can be desperate to make a sale.

“They want to get rid of old inventory so they can get new inventory,” she hypothesizes. “So they’re going to increase the price of the vehicle so there is some wiggle room for negotiation.”

And how does this reflect on Jewell’s car-buying skills?

“I’m just a G like that,” she says. “I didn’t know the invoice price. But I knew what I wanted to pay and what I didn’t want to pay. I didn’t know I was that close to the invoice number, though.”

She continues, “I’m just lucky enough to see. They were not supposed to leave this in the car. I just feel so good about myself. As a woman, I walked in there by myself.”

‘It’s a Great Deal’

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In the comments, viewers debated whether Jewell correctly understood the paperwork she found.

“That’s a Manufacturer Suggested Retail Price (MSRP); not an original invoice,” wrote one person.

Jewell replied, “Y’all think you know so much. The MSRP was on the other side. The invoice was inside of that sticker. Either way, everything that I said is still solid.”

“That’s the MSRP, which includes the dealership margin to ‘make money,'” said another person. “Nonetheless, you got it out the door for that. It’s a great deal, indeed. Enjoy.”

Someone else noted, “Even if it was the invoice; they don’t actually pay that [price] since there are manufacturer incentives.”

Who Is Right?

Jewell is correct that the invoice or dealer price is an important part of the car-buying process.

However, that doesn’t mean it’s the exact price the dealership paid for the Hyundai Sonata. That’s because, as Edmunds explains, it won’t include any incentives the dealership got from the manufacturer.

So did Jewell get a good deal? According to Car and Driver, the 2025 Sonata starts at $28,145 and can cost upwards of $38,000 depending on the trim level.

If we assume Jewell’s Sonata is a base model, she got a fair, but perhaps not extraordinary, deal.

Motor1 reached out to Jewell via TikTok comment and direct message for comment. We’ll update this post if she responds.

 
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