JayS, I understand you’re reasoning 100%, but I think in terms of ride quality and overall comfort, that a Cruze and Volt are in completely different classes.
Maybe I’m wrong, but the premium Volt has a lot of features.
Yeah maybe do a comparison using a model that offers a Hybrid or Electric version and a gas version in the same trim.
My wife intends to buy some Subaru Hybrid Crosstek? If that is a thing. I might have made it up.
^
That exists.
Well, I’m not the first to compare the 2…
http://money.cnn.com/2011/03/25/autos/chevy_volt_vs_cruze_eco/
They’re compact cars from Chevrolet. Looks like it’s pretty easy to get a Cruze LT lease for $200/month which puts them pretty much on par features wise. So with the $720 more for the cost of ownership over 3 years you’re still way ahead of the Volt even after the Volt’s fuel savings.
What if you buy a used Volt for $25k and keep it for 5 years? That probably ends up flipping things.
Though like you said, a Cruze can probably be had for cheaper in the used market as well, so it might even out? Just too lazy to research market values.
OK, I’ll stop being lazy:
I think I’d take the Volt in this case.
I know I’ve done the math before to show buying one new was never going to get you an RoI. I found this one interesting because it was the first time I saw someone throw out the idea of leasing one. With buying the longer you keep the Volt the better chance it has saving you money even if that point is well beyond how long most people keep a car. With the lease though there’s just no chance because you’re paying more on the car the whole time and the extra each month never gets offset with fuel savings. So from month 1 to month 36 the money lost just keeps increasing each month.
I think that goes for just about any eco-friendly car. Fuel costs on compact cars just isn’t high enough to justify the increased cost on an eco-friendly car on a short-term lease. 12k miles/year @ $3.50/gallon means you’re spending $1,400/year on gas in a compact car (30mpg which is low by todays standards). That’s $4,200 over 3 years. So even if you were to go full electric and never pay a dime for energy, you still would need to have a delta of $4,200 OR LESS on the ECO-Friendly car to justify the cost over 3 years.
Now, if you’re anything like my co-worker who keeps his cars consistently for more than 225k miles, then you’re talking actual long term savings.
The other way to see actual savings is to visit @Coldaccord and get you a nice used prius.
@JayS comments are the exact reason why I continue to drive my 01 Corolla. I got 38-40MPG loaded to the brim trunk and rear seat with two adults up front driving down to the Outer Banks and back in August. Last year I had a 110 mile round trip daily commute and strongly considered picking up a used Prius. Even then, running some quick numbers had me driving that commute 2 years before the cost savings went in favor of the Prius; and I certainly had no intentions of making that commute for more than two years. Thankfully it only lasted or one year, now I’m at a comfortable 20 mile round trip commute 
Well it’s not quite the diesel hybrid I wanted but they’ll at least have diesel versions in the US:
Evoque will get the 2.0-liter four-cylinder turbodiesel while larger vehicles like the Range Rover and XJ will have a version of Jaguar’s 3.0-liter diesel that puts out 254 horsepower and 440 lb-ft of torque.