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The evasive manoeuvre test (, ; colloquial: moose test or elk test; , ) is performed to determine how well a certain vehicle evades a suddenly appearing obstacle. This test has been standardized in ISO 3888-2.

Forms of the test have been performed in Sweden since the 1970s. This is because it is more likely that the moose will continue across the road than remain in place or turn back, making it more advisable to brake hard and try to slip behind the animal than to swerve in front of it.

Test specifications

The test is performed on a dry road surface. Traffic cones are set up in an S shape <!-- OK, look at the diagram and tell me that is an S shape --> to simulate the obstacle, road, and road edges. The car to be tested has one belted person in each available seat and weights in the boot to achieve maximum load. In order to qualify as a "pass" the vehicle must successfully navigate the course at .

During an interview in Süddeutsche Zeitung, Collin tried to explain this test by the example of an evasive manoeuvre for a moose on the road. It was soon called Elchtest (moose test).

Mercedes initially denied the problem, but then took the step of recalling all units sold to date (2,600), rebuilding 17,000 cars and suspending sales for three months until the problem was solved by adding electronic stability control and modifying the suspension. The company spent DM 2.5 billion in developing the car, with a further DM 300 million to fix it.

Ongoing testing

Teknikens Värld tests "hundreds of cars every year". with the moose test. It publishes test results since 1983 on their website. The car with the slowest speed to successfully complete the manoeuvre is the Reliant Rialto at .

Some current vehicles, such as the 2021–present Mitsubishi Outlander and Volvo XC40 Recharge T4, still fail this test. The Toyota RAV4 EV originally also failed, but after the latest software revision now passes.

Current champion

In 2025, the IM Motors IM5 set a new benchmark in the moose test (ISO 3888-2 NV), achieving a recorded speed of 90.96 km/h.

Actual moose collision testing

Although the moose test itself is based on the avoidance of hitting an obstruction in the road, testing is also carried out on actual collision with animals in the road. Both Volvo and Saab have a tradition of taking moose crashes into account when building cars. Saab assisted Magnus Gens in creating a crash test dummy moose to simulate moose–vehicle collisions.

The Swedish National Road and Transport Research Institute has developed a moose crash test dummy called "Mooses". The dummy (which is made with similar weight, centre of gravity and dimensions to a live moose) is used to simulate realistic moose collisions.

Australian car manufacturers use crash test kangaroo dummies for similar reasons.

In a 2008 episode of MythBusters, the urban legend that accelerating to hit a moose would cause less damage than braking was investigated and busted using a modified version of Gens's model. It was found that regardless of car type and speed, the damage to a vehicle was catastrophic in all cases.

See also

  • Tilt test (vehicle safety test)

References

  • Swedish National Road and Transport Research Institute - Moose Crash Test Dummy
  • Moose test - list of the fastest and slowest cars