Is it a legitimate safety test your car needs to pass?
Modern cars need to be more than just attractive, comfortable, and powerful performers - safety standards are higher than ever, and buyers want to know that they will be kept safe while on the road. Safety authorities in the USA run specific crash tests to develop official ratings that guide consumers in understanding how much protection they will have in a collision, but another, less-official test has grown in prominence over the past few decades. It's called the moose test, or in some regions, the elk test. Despite its comical name, it's a serious evaluation and has become quite infamous due to the many surprising results it produces. Let's unpack what the moose test is and why it's considered an important test for a car to pass.
If you've assumed this refers to hitting a moose with a car, you're not far off; the moose test isn't a crash evaluation in the vein of using moose-shaped crash-test dummies to see how they fare after a collision. Instead, the moose test is an evasive maneuver test developed in Scandinavia - the name comes from the large ungulate that would often appear in the road without warning, causing drivers to slam on the brakes or swerve around it. Over time, it has been reframed as a simulation of a scenario where a child suddenly runs into the road ahead of you, or another car backs out into your path, requiring you to swerve and then return to your original trajectory to avoid oncoming traffic. The aim is to measure the ability of a vehicle to avoid hitting an obstacle, how stable the car remains during these severe conditions, and whether or not the onboard safety tech does what it is supposed to do.
This test has been standardized by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), which allows those conducting it to use a prescribed setup to obtain results that can be used to improve car safety standards. More than fifty years after this type of testing was first conducted, the moose test is still regularly used to measure whether a car can manage an extreme double-lane-change maneuver within a predefined area and up to what speed it can perform this maneuver without skidding or rolling over.
While the ISO's article 3888-2:2011 prescribes the specifications, conditions, and layout for the driving maneuverability test, Here's a simplified summary of the test conditions and layout:
The moose test procedure is as follows:
The most common question relates to which cars perform well in this test and which have failed. The 1997 Mercedes-Benz A-Class moose test fail was the first result to draw international attention to this test because, despite being a premium brand and a luxury car touted as a safe family vehicle, the first-generation A-Class overturned dramatically during testing. This resulted in the automaker having to spend large sums of money on adding electronic stability control to new cars and modifying the suspension to eliminate this problem. It also recalled scores of cars already sold to rectify the problem. To add insult to injury, a much older, cheaper car managed the test without an issue. Let's look at how some cars fare in the ranking of moose test results:
A moose test pass requires a car to perform severe evasive maneuvers without knocking over any cones, skidding, spinning out, or overturning. The Citroen Xantia Activa V6 holds the moose test record for successfully completing the evaluation at 53 mph and has retained this title since it was tested in 1999. Here is a list of cars that passed the moose test:
Tesla Model Y Moose Test Results
The most recent results from the moose test for the Tesla Model Y are commendable. The conductors of the test praised the excellent steering feel, good suspension setup, and the vehicle's ESC system's responses for helping the car to handle confidently under stress. The EV successfully completed the test at speeds of 51 mph - an excellent result, no doubt helped along by the heavy batteries being located low down in the car.
Subaru Outback Moose Test Results
While the last public moose test for the Subaru Outback was performed a few years ago, the car remained stable in the test, up to 45 mph. It didn't slip or slide, and although it did clip one cone on the track, the driver managed to maintain control of the vehicle the entire time. These results indicate that the Outback is stable and predictable under stress.
Honda CR-V Moose Test Results
The Honda CR-V's moose test results were impressive, showing a smooth and steady response to sudden maneuver changes. Despite clipping some cones on the first attempts, the CR-V passed the test at 46 mph. The experts attributed favorable results to predictable steering responses and a suspension setup that can handle severe and sudden directional changes. Those conducting the test felt that grippier front tires could've helped to prevent understeer effects.
The list of moose test fails is surprising because even vehicles that would seem stable and composed in normal driving may struggle to remain controllable. This list includes:
Jeep Grand Cherokee Moose Test Results
For the Jeep Grand Cherokee, moose test results aren't positive at all. These tests were conducted on the fourth-generation Grand Cherokee models in 2012, and experts felt so strongly about the shocking results that they called Jeep engineers in to witness the Grand Cherokee's inability to hold itself together. There were no successful runs at speeds over 43 mph, and the test conductors noted that the ESC system and rollover mitigation didn't work as they should, and when swerving, the Grand Cherokee bounced around, burst tires, and hit cones with the rear wheels.
Jeep Wrangler Moose Test Results
Another product from Jeep that didn't fare too well was the Jeep Wrangler, for which the last moose test was conducted in 2018 on a Wrangler Rubicon. With the off-road specific tires that come standard on this model, the Wrangler doesn't manage to stay composed at all - not even at speeds under 40 mph. The low-grip tires induced understeer during the first sudden swerve, before snapping into oversteer on the third. Imprecise and slow steering certainly didn't help its case, either.
Mustang Mach-E Moose Test Results
According to the testers, the Mustang Mach-E fails the moose test due to its ESC system not stepping in to rein in the rear end assertively enough. In the test, the Mach-E can be seen squirming around, with its tail end showing instability. Even bringing the speed down to only 42 mph couldn't see the Mach-E pass the test.
There isn't any one thing that allows cars to pass the test. The selection of vehicles that make the cut include gas and electric models, while some hybrids didn't pass at all - there isn't just one specific design aspect, technology, or brand that guarantees a pass. Instead, it seems that a combination of design, driver assist technologies, suspension setup, and responsiveness contribute to a more favorable result.
We do know that there are some things that contribute to better results, though. Weight distribution and how predictably the car transfers its weight to the various tires under severe direction changes are significant, while those cars with tail-happy rear ends tend to be difficult to control, despite a wealth of technology designed to prevent it. Vehicles with a tall body, an extended wheelbase, and comparatively narrow track widths are also a lot harder to rein in when swerving. Lastly, grippier tires and full-time all-wheel drive systems tend to fare better than rear-wheel or even front-wheel drive setups in most scenarios.
The Tesla Model X and Mini SE Countryman both managed the test really well, thanks to their effective stability control systems, low centers of gravity, and good suspension tuning. The Citroen Xantia Activa V6 has held the record for the highest test speed for the last 23 years, however.
While the moose test isn't a required crash safety evaluation, it does give insight into the capabilities of a vehicle to react under extreme conditions and remain safe. The test emulates a scenario that could easily happen on suburban streets, and cars should be able to cope with having to swerve in emergencies such as these. A poor moose test result doesn't necessarily mean that a car isn't safe overall, however - for example, while there aren't any recent positive moose test results for the Ford Explorer, the IIHS has awarded it a Top Safety Pick+ title.
The latest results indicate that EVs, with their batteries low-down and in the center of the car's floor, seem to fare much better in these tests. A low center of gravity is definitely beneficial in this test, but it's not a guarantee of a great test result, however - the Mustang Mach-E had dismal results, for example, while the Hyundai Ioniq 5 performed superbly.