In today’s automotive market, finding a new car lease for under $300 a month feels almost impossible. But one savvy driver – Adriel Hsu, who runs a YouTube channel focused on property and finances – recently took to social media to reveal how he managed to lease a brand-new Cadillac EV for an unbelievable $168 a …
In today’s automotive market, finding a new car lease for under $300 a month feels almost impossible. But one savvy driver – Adriel Hsu, who runs a YouTube channel focused on property and finances – recently took to social media to reveal how he managed to lease a brand-new Cadillac EV for an unbelievable $168 a month.
The vehicle in question carries an original sticker price (MSRP) of $58,000. Under normal circumstances, whether leased or financed, a luxury EV in this price bracket would typically cost a driver almost $1,000 every single month. So, how exactly did he hack the system to secure such a massive discount?
Read More from MotorBiscuit:
How Were They Able To Get The Payment So Low?
The secret to this incredible deal lies in a combination of heavy manufacturer incentives and a specific financing strategy known as a “one-pay lease.”
First, the dealership knocked $5,270 off the initial sticker price, bringing the negotiated cost down to $52,530. But the real savings came from how Hsu chose to structure his payments. Instead of making monthly installments over the 24-month lease term, he opted for a one-pay lease, meaning he paid the entire two-year lease cost upfront.
Why would someone do this? Because dealerships will often lower the “money factor” (the interest rate on a lease) for customers who pay upfront. By utilizing the one-pay method, Hsu secured an interest rate of just 2.5%. If he had chosen standard monthly payments, that interest rate would have jumped to 3.5%.
Next, he stacked an impressive $5,590 in various rebates to aggressively drive down the total cost. These discounts included:
- The Loaner Discount: Because the specific vehicle was a former dealership loaner car, he received a $3,090 rebate.
- The Conquest Rebate: Since Hsu already owned a non-General Motors vehicle, he qualified for a $2,000 “Conquest” discount.
- The GM Credit Card Discount: By simply opening a GM credit card and using it to pay for the one-pay lease, he knocked off another $500.
After applying all these incentives, the total out-of-pocket cost for the entire 24-month lease came to just $5,700. If you divide that by 24 months, it equates to an effective monthly payment of only $238.
The Texas EV Grant Loophole
While an effective $238 monthly payment on a $58,000 luxury EV is already a steal, this deal wasn’t finished. Because Hsu resides in Texas, he qualified for a state-specific clean energy grant.
Texas currently offers grants to encourage drivers to switch to clean energy vehicles. Since he was signing a 24-month lease on a fully electric vehicle, he qualified for a state rebate of $1,666.
When you subtract that final $1,666 state grant from the $5,700 total out-of-pocket cost, the true price of the two-year lease drops to just over $4,000. Divided over 24 months, this savvy negotiator effectively leased a brand-new Cadillac for a jaw-dropping $168 a month.
