The all-new CLA echoes the first-gen A-Class stability issues after Mercedes’ new compact four door coupe failed the moose test.
The moose test owes its name to the Scandinavian countries, where the risk of ending up with an actual moose crossing the road remains very real. In this case, you must have good reflexes and counter the slalom of the car to avoid the big animal.
This “moose test” became an inescapable avoidance maneuver, which is part of the procedures to be followed to test the efficiency of an automobile and its safety: arriving at a stabilized speed in front of a chicane materialized by cones, the car must succeed in maneuvering without touching one of these cones. Otherwise, the moose test is missed.
This moose test has already revealed many weaknesses in the automotive market in the past. And the last victim of this test is the all-new Mercedes CLA which has just switched to the second generation of model.
Our Spanish colleagues from KM77.com carried out the maneuver with a copy of the sedan, in version CLA 200 (equipped with a small 1.33 liter petrol engine developing 163 horsepower).
Failure
And as you can see in their video, the car does not manage to perform the maneuver at 76 km / h without touching the cones. Note that they also tested a CLA Shooting Brake in CLA 200 d 150 horsepower diesel guise (with the same rims and tires), which fared better. We should also note that the CLA example that failed the moose test was much more effective in the classic slalom test and passed it.
