Chrysler alone in fuel subsidy offer

Chrysler is offering to subsidize the cost of gasoline for car and truck buyers, but its biggest rivals -- General Motors, Toyota and Ford -- said Tuesday that they had no plans to match it.

The Auburn Hills, Mich.-based maker of Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep vehicles Monday night announced an offer that caps the price of gasoline at $2.99 a gallon for three years for people who buy or lease new vehicles from today through June 2. The offer covers most models and is based on 12,000 miles of driving a year and government fuel economy ratings.

Customers will get a card for buying gas that is linked to their own charge account, Chrysler said. The customer will be billed $2.99 a gallon, and Chrysler will pay the rest.

Actual savings depend on what happens to gas prices during the next three years, but based on the average price of $3.61 a gallon in Detroit as reported Monday by AAA Michigan, someone buying a 2008 Dodge Durango four-wheel-drive sport utility vehicle with a 5.7-liter V-8 engine would save about $414 per year.

The Durango gets 13 miles per gallon in the city and 18 on the highway, the Environmental Protection Agency says.