Should have been more explicit
Some very interesting analysis, reactions, & experiences related here. I appreciate it, and have learned some things.
But the thing that I learned from this experience itself (and the reason I decided to start a new thread in the first place) hasn't drawn the comments I had hoped for. I should explain better.
Unless you've grown up with ABS, you may have trained yourself to *modulate *the brakes during an emergency stop. If you don't do this and don't have ABS you can skid without control, and braking distance will be longer due to the higher coefficient of static vs. dynamic friction. I may be worse than average in this area because I spent so many years driving motorcycles where it was imperative not to lock up the front wheel, and there was even a need to adjust the front wheel/back wheel brake proportions during a panic stop. I'd certainly have no strength problem hitting the pedal hard enough, but these reflexes are hard to re-train.
Here's my main point: The advantage of brake assist in an emergency stop is that you can fully concentrate on *steering* to avoid or minimize damage. I know I really felt like I was threading a needle a couple of days ago, and I suspect that if I hadn't been doing the best job of both steering and braking I would have needed some body work.
Koz and others have suggested several different reasons why folks might not get maximum braking effect in an emergency stop. Whatever the reasons, a speedy & automatic system that ensures the best stop can then free the driver up to take other action to improve the outcome. If I was a better driver and could be sure I'd do everything right, even in emergencies, BA would be no benefit. Alas, I'm just not that good.
I agree that there are disadvantages to the "intelligent" systems like VSC, throttle-by-wire, and BA. Some posters have explained them very well. And especially for VSC and the de-throttling, I'd like a dash button that turns them off. On balance, though, I'm quite ok with BA.
