Powerful analytical tools exist for reconstructing highway accidents. Simple tools also exist. In attempting to match the tool to the job, one often finds that the more complex tools may not be the best choices, for a variety of reasons discussed herein. This paper describes the results of an effort to develop a medium-level procedure that efficiently couples the microcomputer with the accident diagram for vehicle-to-vehicle crashes. Features include the following:​

• Use of the best features of the CRASH3 damage analysis theory and generalizing it to accommodate varying numbers of crush measurements at uneven intervals, while facilitating the use of actual vehicle dimensions and crash test data.
• Use of two-dimensional scale models to enhance the engineering interpretation of vehicle damage observations.
• Full co-planar momentum analysis, with multiple internal consistency checks and with Principal Direction of Force (PDOF) as an output.
• Use of coordinate systems designed to minimize the input data changes between runs.

These simplified procedures permit rapid and convenient iterative analysis in a portable (64K) microcomputer environment