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The Moose test, also known as the Elk test or Älgtest in Swedish, has been used in Sweden for decades to test how a certain vehicle acts when avoiding a sudden danger, such as an elk. The test is made on dry asphalt. Cones are set up in an S shape to simulate the obstacle, the road and its edges. The car which is going to be tested has one belted person at every available seat and weights in the trunk to achieve maximum load. When the driver comes onto the track, he quickly swerves into the oncoming lane to avoid the object and then immediately swerves back to avoid oncoming traffic. This is done again with a speed increase until the car skids down the cones or spins around. This test became widely known when Swedish motor journalists overturned the Mercedes-Benz A-Class in the moose test, while a much older Trabbi (Trabant car) managed it perfectly.
Swerving into the opposite lane to avoid an elk is not recommended on busy roadways because of the risk hitting another vehicle head-on. The best thing to do is to avoid hitting the moose by braking or driving down the road embankment if necessary. If that's not possible and a collison can't be avoided, it would be better to hit the rear part of the animal so the horns don't smash through the windscreen.
Moose test is also used in a more general sense to refer to any stringent test of the quality of a product.
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