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Looks like the prospect of leasing an electric MINI is an attractive one for more people than MINI expected. (via Automotive News)

>Mini USA is taking longer than expected to select 450 lessees for its electric car because of the deluge of about 1,800 applicants.

>Mini USA has whittled the applicant list to about 1,000 people. Applications are being vetted by 16 dealers — five in New York, three in New Jersey and eight in Los Angeles. The dealers will lease and service the cars during the trial, said Jim McDowell, vice president of Mini USA.

>”We have to make sure their driving style fits with what we want,” he said. “If you drive 200 miles a day, that’s a longer daily drive than our range.”

>Mini also required applicants to have a lockable garage so the company can install an electrical charge box. The monthly lease for a Mini E is $850.

+ Mini electric test delayed by surge of applicants / Automotive News