online surveys and discussions, and to bring their vehicle into their local dealership to be worked on. The car was available only as a three-year limited lease, and drivers were required to return their cars to BMW who destroyed or donated them to tech schools and museums for display, disassembly, and analysis purposes. U.S. program In the U.S. 9,500 people signed up to lease the 450 Mini Es available. In June 2009, BMW started the program by leasing 250 units in the Los Angeles area and 200 in the New York/New Jersey area. The leasing price was set at (approx. ) a month for one year and included collision coverage, maintenance costs, and home installation of the charging station. Residents of New Jersey did not pay sales tax on their lease due to the existing state exemption for battery electric vehicles. In May 2010, BMW announced that leasing could be renewed for another year at a lower price of a month. This renewal was offered to all individuals who had a Mini E lease at the time but fleet customers were excluded and according to BMW half of all lessees agreed to the extension. European program France Field testing in Paris with 50 units began in 2010. Germany A total of 100 trial vehicles were assigned to Germany. Testing in Berlin began in June 2009, and for the second phase, a total of 70 vehicles were delivered in March 2011 to private customers and fleet users. Field testing began in Munich in September 2010, for a leasing fee of (approx. ) per month. United Kingdom Testing in the U.K. took place between December 2009 and March 2011 with 40 Mini E cars handed to private users for two consecutive six-month field trial periods. The leasing price was set at (around ) per month, which included VAT, insurance, service and maintenance. One MINI E was delivered to the Government car pool in Downing Street to be tested by ministers in an urban environment on their official business around London. The UK trial was a partnership between BMW Group UK, Scottish and Southern Energy, the South East England Development Agency (SEEDA), Oxford City Council and Oxfordshire County Council. Data collection and research was conducted by Oxford Brookes University's Sustainable Vehicle Engineering Centre throughout the UK project. Funding support was provided by the Technology Strategy Board and the Department for Transport (DFT) as