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Assuming each lasts 5 years (300,000 miles), here are the approximate fuel costs of a new Prius over, say, a new Yaris:
Prius: 300,000 miles / 55 mpg * $3.00 = $16,363
Yaris: 300,000 miles / 42 mpg * $3.00 = $21,428
So a savings of roughly $5,000 in fuel for the Prius, based on what I've been able to achieve on both cars in mixed highway-focused driving. (The Yaris was an auto, so there's even more room there.)
The problem is that when you're driving 60,000 miles per year, you run the real risk of major overhaul long before the loan is paid off. The base MSRP on the Yaris is $9,990 vs. $22,000 for the Prius. I'm not saying you shouldn't own a Prius, but the risk is that you could be facing battery pack, engine and/or transmission replacement before 5 years is up, while still having to make the payment. The Yaris uses a traditional drivetrain, so could be fixed cheaply or swapped with a fresh Japanese transplant even more cheaply.
When you do the kind of driving you're talking about (I do almost 40,000 miles per year, so I know where you're coming from), cost does become a larger factor. Plus, why not drive the wheels off something cheap and get a Prius as something to enjoy?
I do like the idea of a used 1G Insight. Honda quoted me a replacement pack price of $1,400--not too bad, and the rest of the drivetrain is pretty traditional stuff. You should get better mileage than the Prius and enjoy much cheaper repairs.
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