Automakers are getting creative with the offers they use to try to lure you into showrooms.  We told you earlier this week that, despite dismal auto sales, dealers have few new incentives to offer this month.  However, the few new deals we have seen are increasingly novel promotions that have some financial analysts scratching their heads.  Chrysler is offering to guarantee that gas will cost buyers no more than $2.99 for the first three years they own a new car -- which is not a particularly good deal.  Now, Volkswagen is offering to help you pay for your child's college education if you buy a new VW Routan minivan.

Motor Trend explains, "VW is offering the deal through Upromise, a company that lets users prepare for college by contributing to an account when they make purchases at partner retail stores."  VW will deposit $1,500 in the Upromise account of any buyer who pre-orders a Routan before August 31 (the Routan is a brand new model that won't be delivered to dealers until November, so you'd have to sign the papers now and wait for the van).  "The $1500 Routan bonus can only be deposited into a Upromise account, but creating one is free on their website."

If you'd rather not keep the money in a Upromise account, you may be able to move it, but only to another specialized college savings account.  According to Kicking Tires, "The college-saving website then allows users to put the money into a 529 plan."

So, if Chrysler's offer is such a good deal, is this one worthwhile?

On the Routan itself, it's hard to say.  This is a brand new model that few in the automotive press have spent any time with, yet.  The Routan is essentially a re-badged Chrysler Town & Country, which currently ranks third of eight minivans in our rankings.  It has some innovative creature comforts that are well liked, but its long-term reliability is in question and most reviewers find its exterior boring, even for a minivan.

Financially, we're withholding judgment until more details come out.  As the Los Angeles Times points out, "The way things are at the moment, anyone who walks into a showroom could probably get more off the price of a new car just by gentle negotiation. … remember: It’s a buyer’s market."

If VW dealers use the college incentive deal as an excuse not to negotiate down the price of the van, then it probably makes sense to shop around -- you could probably get a similar vehicle for a lower price and save the money yourself.

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