I haven't used the ABS system in my car many times, but when I have, I was glad to have had it there. Just the other day a nut-job pulled out from a side-street stop sign right in front of me. I hammered the brake pedal and the BAS (Brake Assist) took the car into full ABS braking. I cranked the wheel and swung the car hard left as there was no way to stop in time. Thanks to the maximum braking the car was slowed quite a bit and I was able to steer under full braking around the moron, avoiding a collision.
One problem with ABS is that most people have no idea of how to use it. Years ago I had to "teach" my wife how to use the ABS system. She had spent so much time releasing the pedal under lock-up to seek the threshold, that she would release the pedal when the ABS pulsed. I suspect many folks do just that, negating the benefit of ABS and actually making things worse. Once she got used to just mashing the pedal and letting the computer do the work, she was fine.
I agree that not all systems are created equal. Both the Subaru and MB systems seem to work very well, with high pulse rates (meaning lots of pulses per second for effective braking) and good pedal feel.
One thing that people need to understand is that ABS, ESP, and so on cannot create traction where there is none. Good tires are still the real key to safe driving. (and good skills too...)
