You're taking it too literally. Since Model T, cars have improved tremendously. Efficiency, comfort, and safety are still getting better year after year. That is engineering with a goal, to make a better vehicle.

Things like hydraulic power steering is a good thing. It is there for a reason, and taking it away does not make better engineering. It is however being replaced with electronic power steering, for the exact engineering reasons. Before we could make reasonable good electronic power steering, there was nothing to take away from the hydraulic steering, but taking away the power steering itself, would be a step back.