Max Bottaro

Chrysler motors has a new promotion deal that has critics (and my peers) raving. In the past two days, I’ve had no less than three friends come up to me and tell me about Chrysler’s new “awesome” deal. For those of you who don’t know or haven’t heard, here’s the scoop: On Cinco De Mayo (5/5/08 for my gringos) Chrysler launched its “Let’s Refuel America” in hopes of boosting lagging sales. The promotion basically gives purchasers of most new Chrysler Vehicles a gas card that ensures they will pay no more than 2.99 per gallon of gas for the next 3 years.

This is a great campaign for a number of reasons. First of all, it appeals to peoples’ frustration and fears of rising gas prices. I don’t think there’s anyone out there who isn’t pissed off while fueling up their car, or apprehensive about the future. This campaign solves both these consumer pains, at least for the next three years. Also, on a visceral level, the “2” dollar something feels safer. Never mind that for all intended purposes the price is really 3 dollars a gallon: people haven’t seen a 2 in the dollar place at gas stations in a while, they see 4s now; and 2 is half of 4, right? On an emotional level, yes. Forget rational right now, people are freaking out, and Chrysler is capitalizing on this.

But how great is Chryslers’ new deal? Well let’s take a look at the numbers: the average American drives 12,000 miles and buys around 500 gallons a year. If you drive more, it doesn’t matter because the card only covers you for up to 12,000 miles a year. So let’s be conservative and say your drive the whole 12,000 miles you’re allowed for all 3 years. That’s 36,000 miles @ 2.99$.

Great, so how much are you saving at the pump? Well, let’s again take the conservative route and use California gas prices (which are comparatively higher than the rest of the country) which are around $4.03 on average. Let’s again be conservative and say that gas prices will in fact go up over the next 3 years, and that consumers will be less picky about going to expensive gas station, since they are only paying $2.99/gallon no matter what. So let’s say, over the next 3 years, you will spend and average of $4.25/gallon. Let’s also look at how many gallons Chrysler will actually let you buy, which varies per model, depending on how much of a gas guzzler the car is. Let’s again give Chrysler the benefit of the doubt and take the most gas thirsty models, the Dodge Durango, Ram, Chrysler Aspen, and Jeep Commander. All these vehicles have the maximum amount of gallons allotted for the program, 2,400.

2,400 gallons x $4.25/gallon = $10,200 (what you would spend if in 3 years without being on the Chrysler gas plan)

2,400 gallons x 2.99/gallon= $7176 (what you would spend on Chryslers “Refuel America” program)

10,200-7176= $3,024 total savings, under the most conservative conditions possible.

So three thousand cash back under optimal conditions is really what Chrysler is offering, except you have to sign up for a credit card and deal with a bunch of rules and regulations instead of them just writing you a check. I’d also like to add that you can only get regular 87 octane, and you’d probably will only end up getting around $2,300 back because on average gas isn’t $4.25, you probably wouldn’t drive all the miles allowed, or have that particular gas card with you every time you fuel up. Chrysler knows this, and they also know that American consumers are easy to appeal to emotionally; that’s why the are making this offer.

Great deal, Chrysler. Oh wait, $3000 (or less) cash back with a ton of strings attached is nothing special, and your new lineup is lackluster and uninspiring. Astonishingly none of Chrysler’s new vehicles get over 25MPG, so in the long run it would be unwise to purchase one. Instead, you could buy different brand car with better fuel economy, get actual cash back, and save a lot more on gas in the long run. Hate, hate, hate.

Note: All SRT models, Sprinter, Viper, Crossfire, Wrangler, Wrangler Unlimited, Ram Chassis Cab, and Challenger models are ineligible to participate in this program.

*The gallon allotment calculation used to determine three years of gas at $2.99 per gallon is as follows: 12,000 miles driven per year multiplied by 3 years, divided by the vehicle’s adjusted combined EPA City/Highway average miles per gallon (MPG) (average MPG calculated via average of all body models MPG within each nameplate). Please refer to attached matrix to view individual nameplate average MPG and program gallon allotment.
Chrysler, Jeep and Dodge are registered trademarks of Chrysler LLC .

Let’s Refuel America Eligibility & Incentive Option Chart