I know, it sounds a little confusing, but it’s absolutely true. Toyota has just announced pricing for most of its 2008 lineup, and there was a happy little inclusion in there about the Prius. You can now buy the signature hybrid car for less. How is this possible? Have they found a more cost-effective way of building the ubiquitous green car? Well, not exactly.

Instead, Toyota created a “standard” model of the Prius, which includes fewer bells and whistles than the version that we’ve grown accustomed to these past few years. The “standard” Toyota Prius starts at $20,950. If you want the full meal deal, then you’re going to have to opt for the “Limited”, which actually goes up in price by $150 to $23,220. See what I mean? The Prius got cheaper and more expensive at the same time.

Pictured here is the current Toyota Prius, though I’d imagine that the ’08 model won’t look all that different.