The all-new Nissan Ariya has been subjected to the dreaded moose test, and it passed with flying colors. It completed a successful run at the maximum speed at which this famous test is conducted, which is 77 kph, or roughly 48 mph.

The team at km77.com takes every car up to 48 mph to see how the car does. If it fails, the speed is dialed down until said vehicle can complete the maneuver safely, but not such concessions were needed for the Ariya to make its way through the course.

This impressive result put the Ariya in some prestigious company. The Polestar 2 also aced the test, but unexpected EV failures include the BMW i4 and the Jaguar I Pace. The Ariya also beat one of its main rivals, the Ford Mustang Mach-E. The latter failed the test spectacularly.

The dreaded moose test has proved to be a particularly tricky obstacle for EVs, despite the initial consensus that they'd be good at it. Most EVs are built on a skateboard platform with the battery mounted between the front and rear wheels. This results in an extremely low center of gravity, one of the hallmarks of safe, predictable handling.

While this should be the case according to the laws of physics, manufacturers tend to get caught out because of stability control systems. The I-Pace and i4 both failed the test due to wonky electronic nannies.

According to km77.com, the Ariya was safe and predictable at the limit, and the car went exactly where the driver wanted it to, despite the apparent understeer. The Nissan obviously has electronic nannies too, but the Japanese company has apparently done a better job than BMW and Jag.

In the interest of accuracy, the European model tested here rides on a set of Michelin Primacy 4, while the local models are equipped with Dunlop Grandtrek PT21s. Both are all-terrain tires, and the Michelins are not performance biased in any way.

This is yet another win for the Ariya, which is a sublime product. After driving it for the first time, we summed it up as a budget version of the BMW iX. It's tuned for comfort and is a worthy replacement for the Leaf as Nissan's poster child for electrification.

The pricing is a bit on the high side, with an entry-level model costing roughly $43,000. Unfortunately, it will soon no longer qualify for the $7,500 federal tax credit unless production moves to the US or the rules of the Inflation Reduction Act change.