Mini Starts the Mini E Leasing in the UK

It is a known fact that the UK government militates for the use of zero emission cars, so things are getting started in that direction. MINI just announced that forty electric MINI E models were handed out to their future test drivers at the plant in Oxford.

The cars were given as part of a research project meant to determine the psychological, social and technical aspects of living with an electric car. The cars were leased, not sold, for a period of six months. The MINI e costs £330 per month.

According to MINI, “to cover the research and investment costs of the project a MINI E would normally cost in the region of £550 a month to lease, however part funding from the Government’s Technology Strategy Board means that the lease cost to MINI E pioneers is just £330 per month, which includes VAT, insurance, service and maintenance.

Over and above this payment, the only other costs that MINI E pioneers will incur are for the electricity they use when charging their car. A full charge at home (for a completely flat battery) costs just £1.50 when using off-peak electricity or around £4.00 when charging during peak hours. This translates to just over a penny a mile when charging off-peak.”

The MINI E program from UK is not the first of its kind, as projects like these were launched in North America and Germany.