It's Finally Happened...Now I've Heard It All!

“Guns and Gas”Multi-line new car dealer in Butler MO gets a lot of free publicity with controversial promotion

DealersEdge Daily Headlines (5/22/2008)

Buyers of new vehicles can choose between a $250 gas card or a semi-automatic hand gun. So far 80% opt for the gun.Max Motors in Butler Missouri is a GM, Ford and Chrysler dealer offering a wide variety of new vehicle brands. The “Guns and Gas” promotion is getting him a lot of free publicity and runs through May 31.

This story is getting a lot of play on local Kansas City news stations and newspapers and also has resulted in an Associated Press report. There was no indication in any of the news reports of how successful the stunt was in producing new vehicle sales, but it certainly has been successful in putting this small-town dealer on the map. Butler is a town of about 4,200 and lies about 30 miles south of Kansas City.

The Max Motors Web site trumpets the promotion with a cartoon character holding a pistol in one hand and a gas pump nozzle in the other. Under the banner- “FREE Handgun* or Gas Card with Every Purchase” comes the sub-head reading - “We are aware of the gasoline and crime problem in America. Max Motors, the Country Dealer wants to be part of the solution and not part of the problem.” The “*” spells out that the dealership will issue a coupon with which the customer can claim their pistol after going through the necessary background checks.

Some of the more colorful quotes appearing include: “I’m telling them to get the semiautomatic because it holds more rounds,” said the dealership’s general manager Walter Moore. (from KansasCity.com) or – “Just a nice small little gun,” said dealer Steve Priest. (from a report filed by WCSH) Also from the WCSH report Moore is quoted as saying, “You’ve got car-jackings. You got innocent people being shot and killed. I figure it’s time for people to protect themselves.”

In a televised video report a representative from Max Motors commented that everyone around Butler carries guns and that when they appraise trade-ins it is not unusual at all to find multiple guns in the vehicle.

There was no mention of Chrysler’s guaranteed $2.99 gas promotion or whether or not this was the inspiration for the “Guns and Gas” promotion.

I wonder...Maybe they're planning on using their new gun to hold up a gas station!