Since the initial publication of Hu et al. (1992. Theor. Comput. Fluid Dyn. 3. 285), the numerical method developed for direct simulations of fluid-solid systems using the arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian (ALE) technique has undergone continuous modifications. Some of the modifications were described in H. H. Hu (1996, Int. J. Multiphase Flow 22. 335). In this paper, we will present the most up-to-date implementation of the method and the results of several benchmark test problems. (C) 2001 Academic Press.