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It's hard to imagine gas at $2.49 a gallon being too good to be true, but then again, these are dire economic times.

In the last week, radio spots have flooded the Tucson area promising listeners cheap gas if they visit a Web site, www.radiogasdeal.com.

Just click and save, they say.

But there is a catch to the radio gas deal — isn't there always? — as visitors to the site are required to provide a load of personal information.

This is followed by a seemingly endless barrage of surveys until finally visitors get the "opportunity" to apply for high-interest credit cards or to purchase book and coffee club memberships or entertainment books.

Essentially, if a person buys one of these products he or she is eligible for a gas card that will cover the difference between the actual cost of gas and $2.49 a gallon for 15 gallons. So, with gas prices hovering at $3.80 a gallon, a person would in theory get a gas card for $20.

The Better Business Bureau of Southern Arizona is looking into the company behind the gas deal, a marketing firm out of Richmond, Va., called Free Zone Media, said bureau spokeswoman Kim States, who heard the radio ad last Monday.

Any time you have consumers who are in financial distress, people who would take advantage of them are not far behind, she said.

"We are not saying that radiogasdeal.com is a scam, but we would urge consumers to use extreme caution," States said.

The radio gas deal Web site has several "red flags," States said. First and foremost, there is no clear contact information if something goes wrong with the order. There is a contact link, but that opens up another window with an e-mail form.

There is no phone number on the Web site. It took some Internet searching to find a number for Free Zone, but despite numerous calls there, a reporter never spoke to a human being.

The other red flag is, the site has a link for a product called "Ethos," which claims to save up to 90 cents a gallon.

"You probably want to be checking with your mechanic before you go dumping some additive into your gas tank," States said.

In recent months the Better Business Bureau has been flooded with complaints about false additives promising to improve fuel economy, she said.

Numerous messages left with Free Zone, as well as an attorney in Virginia listed as the company's agent on corporate filings, were not returned.

A Denver-based company also may be attached to the gas gimmick, States said.

The gas "deal" has been a sore topic between Tucson radio listener Sabrina Fladness and her boyfriend. Fladness said she has been urging her boyfriend not to go to the Web site, but he's tempted by the idea of cheap gas.

"He said that he was going to do it," she said. "I told him … if something like this is real and working, then everybody would be doing it."

The Web site goes out of its way to make it seem official. For example, it has an acronym, AGRP, similar to the well-known acronym for the prominent retiree group AARP, which it has nothing to do with. The site says the acronym stands for "America's Gasoline Relief Program."

But this isn't some kind of federal subsidy, and the site goes on to clarify with snappy, authoritative text.

"With the national economy sluggish at best, and the government being slow to respond, AGRP has created a National Gasoline Relief Program designed to bring help to the ridiculously high gas prices this year," the site says.

"If you are like thousands of Americans, your gas bill is as high, it (sic) not higher than your car payment! AGRP, with the help of participating advertisers, are saving thousands of American households Hundreds of Dollars each and every month."

The ad has been playing on 93.7 KRQQ, a Clear Channel Communications station.

Messages left with Clear Channel headquarters were not returned.

Debbie Wagner, market manager for KRQQ, said "it was a national buy" and no one at the station had any say in the ad being played. Besides, no one has complained, she said.

"I haven't had one call," she said, noting that the Web site does explain to people how the "gas deal" works.

How effectively the gimmick takes hold of gas-crazed minds is anyone's guess. Though the radio ad appealed to Fladness' boyfriend, radio listener Melanie Ferrington heard it and immediately thought "baloney."

"The minute I heard it, I thought, 'That can't be real,' " she said. "If it's too good to be true, it's too good to be true."

States, of the Better Business Bureau, said consumers should be wary of any combination of the words "deal" and "gas."

She said the Better Business Bureau is also investigating another gasoline Web site that has offers it finds questionable.

"What we are asking consumers to do is use extreme caution," she said.

"Carefully read and understand all the terms and conditions of any offer that's promising to save you money on gas. … Anything with 'gas' and 'deal' should set off alarm bells."