Going from a '08 to '05; what to be aware of, steering feels different?

After driving a 2008 Prius for the last few years, the vehicle was filed as a loss on January 27th. Since then I have been looking for a new car (and technically my first since the '08 was registered under a parent).

I found a 2005 Prius with 70,000 miles and an agreed upon Price on $7,000. A vehicle inspection was just done by a Toyota dealership and everything came back clear. After driving it, the steering felt noticeable softer than '08 model.

Was there any changes between those years that would cause that and would there be anything I could do make it firmer? Also is that a reasonable price?