Chrysler Up Cash Rebates: $500

June 21, 2002

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. Bloomberg News is reporting that DaimlerChrysler AG raised cash incentives by $500 on many of Chrysler unit's sport-utility vehicles and its Ram full-size pickup, matching a General Motors Corp. move earlier this month.

The company now is offering as much as $2,500 on heavy-duty versions of the Dodge Ram pickup and as much as $2,000 on the base-model Ram, spokesman James Kenyon said. The offer also applies to the Jeep Liberty sport-utility among others, he said.

U.S. sales of cars and light trucks fell 5.9 percent in May, led by declines of 12 percent from the year-ago month at General Motors and Ford Motor Co. as the two largest automakers ended no-interest loan campaigns. DaimlerChrysler's Chrysler rose 4.4 percent, led by the third-biggest U.S. automaker's trucks.

Earlier this month, General Motors raised cash incentives by as much as $750 to $1,750 on its midsize sport-utilities such as the Chevrolet TrailBlazer and by $500 to $2,500 to buyers of the Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra full-size pickups. Those offers run through July 1.

The latest Chrysler campaign began June 19 and runs through July 1, Kenyon said.