Chrysler to Subsidize Own Poor Fuel Economy

For a company whose better half sells the Smart car, Chrysler sure ain’t.  

The auto manufacturer announced yesterday that it would cover all gas costs above $2.99-a-gallon for three years with the purchase of a new Chrysler vehicle. It was at this point that 3^rd graders everywhere did some quick math and realized it was anything but a good deal.

According to David Friedman, research director of the Clean Vehicles program at the Union of Concerned Scientists, “the buyer of an average Chrysler vehicle would save $400 a year under Chrysler's deal. But a mere 3-mpg boost would yield the same savings.” Indeed, this meager mileage improvement would yield a $3,000 savings over the life of the car.

This is just the latest in a long history of eco-lulz from Chrysler, which boasts some of the worst fleet economy statistics in the world. The company was on the losing end of a landmark eco-law case last year, and has yet to announce plans for hybrids in a size smaller than “land yacht”.

Guess they must have seen what a hit GMC’s Yukon hybrid was with the intelligentsia…