In the U.S., German luxury brands have succeeded in getting people who might have once thought the cars were out of their league in buying and leasing some snazzy rides.


A. have succeeded in getting people who might have once thought the cars were out of their league in buying and leasing some snazzy rides

B. have succeeded in getting people who might have once thought the cars were out of their league to buy and lease some snazzy rides

C. have succeeded in getting people who once might have thought the cars were out of their league to buy and lease some snazzy rides

D. has succeeded in getting people who might have once thought the cars were out of their league to buy and lease some snazzy rides

E. has succeeded in getting people who might have once thought the cars were out of their league in buying and leasing some snazzy rides
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Step 1: Identifying What Is Tested

Look for differences across the answer options to identify what is being tested in the sentence.
Some of the options use the plural verb “have succeeded” and some use the singular construction “has succeeded”.
Some options use the construction “in buying and leasing” and some use the “to buy and lease” construction.
Also, the placement of the word “once” varies across the options.

Step 2: Understanding the Sentence

The subject of the sentence is “German luxury brands”, which is plural. Therefore, the corresponding plural verb should be “have succeeded”.
It is idiomatic to say “in getting x... to do y”. The correct construction should be “in getting people… to buy and lease”.
The word “once” should always be placed before the word that it has to refer to. In this sentence, “once” refers to the verb “thought”. Therefore, “have once thought” should be the correct placement.

Step 3: Eliminating Options

Choice (A) is incorrect because the construction “in buying” is not idiomatic.
Choice (C) can be eliminated because the adverb “once” has been misplaced.
Choices (D) and (E) can be eliminated because of the usage of the singular verb “has succeeded”. Moreover, choice (E) can be eliminated for the construction “in buying”.

Choice B is the correct answer.
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