The 1999 Ford Expedition driven by former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin while she was mayor has been sold on eBay by the City of Wasilla, Alaska.

The city's public works department listed and sold the vehicle in late November after it was designated as surplus, said Archie Giddings, Wasilla's public works director.

The 5.4L Expedition XLT model has 74,188 miles on it and was purchased new in 1999. It was Palin's official vehicle until she left office in 2002. In August 2008, the then-unknown Palin entered the national spotlight when Sen. John McCain picked her as his presidential running mate.

Giddings added the vehicle to eBay on Nov. 18. Bidding closed Nov. 28. The vehicles was sold for $10,300—nearly five times the vehicle's estimated $2,500 Kelley Blue Book value—to a resident of Fairbanks.

After 2002, the city had been using the Expedition as an administrative vehicle, Giddings said. The city's fleet consists of about 40 vehicles for police, public works, and administrative uses.

By Paul Clinton