The important difference is that those cars were designed for you to steer and brake it without assistance. Different gear ratios and such.
I had to drive a modern car home once with the power brakes malfunctioning and I couldn't exert enough force (grabbing the steering wheel to give me leverage) to have safe braking power. I ended up going very slow in the emergency lane of the highway in second speed so that motor braking could help me stop. It was not fun.
I had to drive a modern car home once with the power brakes malfunctioning and I couldn't exert enough force (grabbing the steering wheel to give me leverage) to have safe braking power. I ended up going very slow in the emergency lane of the highway in second speed so that motor braking could help me stop. It was not fun.