Buy Mountaineer, Get Electric Scooter Free

Comedians often make fun of small cars when they hit the market, suggesting that they’d make good emergency transportation stored in the trunks and cargo spaces of larger vehicles. The original VW Bug as a spare for the trunk of a Cadillac is the classic example.

Well, marketing mavens never let an idea go untried.

For the month of June, Mercury dealers in California and Hawaii are offering the unusual combination of a free, rechargeable electric scooter with every Mercury Mountaineer sport-utility.

The scooters, by Zapworld.com in Sebastapol, fold up into a package the size of a small suitcase and can be charged from a household outlet or a car or truck’s 12-volt power outlet (what used to be called a cigarette lighter). Range on a single charge? “Several miles,” according to Mercury’s announcement.