Green Car Congress: Mariner Hybrid Auction Pulls in $47,500 for Charity

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Mariner Hybrid Auction Pulls in $47,500 for Charity

13 June 2005

The first public sale of the Ford 2006 Mercury Mariner Hybrid raised $47,500 in a live auction at the Heal the Bay “Bring Back the Beach” dinner. (Earlier post.)

Mercury donated a 2006 Mariner Hybrid SUV (details in earlier post) to Heal the Bay, the Santa Monica-based environmental group dedicated to improving water quality along California's coastline. The Mariner Hybrid was the premier auction item at the group’s annual “Bring Back the Beach” dinner June 2, held adjacent to the sand at Santa Monica Beach.

The winning bidder was Ardie Tavangarian, owner of ARYA, an architecture, construction, and project management firm in West Los Angeles. He purchased the Mariner Hybrid for his Senior Project Manager, Dean VanRossen to use as a company car.

The Heal the Bay auction marked the first public sale of a Mercury Mariner Hybrid. Last year, one of the first Ford Escape Hybrids was also sold at the Heal the Bay dinner. Klaus and Jami Heidegger, longtime Heal the Bay supporters, bid $40,000 to win the green SUV.

Initially planned as a 2007 model, Mercury Mariner Hybrid production was pulled ahead one year in response to growing customer interest in hybrid vehicles. Mariner Hybrid is one of four additional gasoline-electric hybrids Ford Motor Company will introduce in three calendar years.

June 13, 2005 in Hybrids | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)