Successfully picked up the vehicle from the dealership. I’ll post the signed contract soon.
LOVE LOVE LOVE the vehicle, the two tone color, and the driving experience.
Many thanks again to those who willingly shared their knowledge on the forum and directly by responding to this post. It was certainly the encouragement I received from these responses that kept my hope up when I lost the earlier deal on the 2024 model and soon after land this even better deal on the 2025 model.
Thanks @anique @ChevyCoach @gohawks23 @delta737h @ElectricEliminator @paranoidgarliclover @Nom_De_Plume @max_g @LeaserOC @Thundereg and many many others for sharing their helpful knowledge on LH.
Final numbers: CALCULATOR | LEASEHACKR
Includes $450 in excess wear and tear insurance which I decided to take for peace of mind as we’re a ding prone family and this is my first time leasing. So total out the door one-pay price was $4,636 (actually $4775 as dealership charged 3% credit card fees to pay with a card)
At the dealership, it took ~8 hours to get through the process vs my plan of 2 hours tops. Many steps took longer than expected and there were some unexpected obstacles to navigate including an unexpected price increase of ~$600 which the dealer ultimately agreed to not pass on to me after I protested. It was tied to wrong instructions on how to apply for the GM card to get $500 rebate. The card application has to be originated by a specific URL the dealer shares and not just via a google search as the sales person had informed me.
Happy to take Qs and share my knowledge (limited as it might be).