Abstract The objective of Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) is to support drivers in mastering the driving task. Until now, the development of ADAS has mainly focused on technology, safety and comfort. This paper aims to complement this by a more experiential view. A study explored how Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC), as an example of ADAS, impacts people´s driving experience. It showed that ACC creates a gap between the driver and her car. This gap can be interpreted in two different ways. It is negative, when the “joy of driving” is in the fore, because it removes the feeling of mastery, control, being in charge and being one with the car. It is potentially positive, when the “joy while driving” is in the fore, because it creates the freedom to engage in pleasurable activities beyond driving. Unfortunately, the current concept of “supervisory control” for ADAS does not allow for the disengagement with driving. Based on our findings, we discuss crucial aspects to consider when designing ADAS from an experiential perspective.