Mini Coopers sold out in 2008.  In an economy hammered by $4 gasoline, consumers turned to small cars - and the little four-seater from BMW's MINI division flew off of lots so fast that dealers had sold all of the cars the company could produce in a year by mid August.    But the automotive world is moving away from gasoline, with products like the upcoming Chevy Volt winning hype and generating waiting lists of potential buyers.   For BMW, the next step seems obvious.  And now it's been confirmed - an Electric MINI Cooper will be on display at the Los Angeles Auto Show next month, and may begin reaching customers in some states by 2010.

The U.K.'s AutoCar has the first pictures of the car...which looks exactly like a gasoline-powered MINI, except for the electric plug painted on the roof.  No, we're not kidding.  They report that "Between 500 and 1000 examples will be made and leased out to selected customer in New York, LA, New Jersey and possibly London, cities where the necessary recharging infrastructure is already in place."

Autoblog reports, "The MINI E reportedly has a range of 150 miles after an 8-hour charge. Its electric heart beats out 204-horsepower and 162 lb-ft of torque, which should be plenty to make this MINI scoot. Indeed, the run to 60 should take a bit over 8-seconds and the top speed has been limited to 95 miles per hour." 

Jalopnik notes that the numbers are "nothing spectacular, but when you consider the lack of shifts and the electric's full torque production at 0 RPM, it's gotta feel like a jet plane taking off." 

Pricing has not been announced, though BMW has said the first vehicles will be available only through a lease arrangement - a common approach for automakers testing new propulsion technologies.  Honda did the same with its hydrogen-powered FCX Clarity, which is already in the hands of some California drivers.

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