On balance, I think these systems are pretty good, but they aren’t without issues. To take Adaptive Cruise Control as an example. With regular cruise control, if I was on a motorway and closing in on a vehicle I would simply indicate and overtake it. With ACC I set it at a certain speed (usually 79mph on a motorway as that wouldn’t result in a ticket ?) and then I glance down and realise that my speed has dropped gradually by 10mph or more due to a car in front that I needn’t have slowed for and then I have to pick up speed manually to pass it (as the speed pick up with ACC can be too slow to pull out safely without annoying other road users). Like c2clo I have lost the use of ACC and forward assist a few times due to snow obscuring the camera.
The worst example I had of new systems being dangerous was the forward assist (emergency braking) which developed a mind of its own. Once on a sunny day on the M4, it slammed the breaks on as I passed under the shadow of a bridge. The brakes released after a second but was scary. The worst time was on an A road when it was lashing rain and wind. All of a sudden, and without warning, the car braked sharply, seat belts reacted by pulling down etc. Again, the brakes released after a second or two, so I didn’t come to a halt, but until 60 seconds before there was an idiot white van man behind me who was tailgating me inches from my rear bumper. Had it happened a minute or so earlier we would have had a nasty accident. I had to keep remembering to manually switch off the system every time I started the car until I could get it in to the dealers and I covered myself by calling Motability to report that the car wasn’t safe.
On the other hand, when they work properly these systems can save lives. Sadly, the standard of driving that you see nowadays is shocking and people’s reactions slow as they age, so on balance I welcome them, but would just like them to be more reliable.