The Class 340 of Renfe (4000 under the previous numbering scheme) were a class of 4-axle

diesel-hydraulic locomotive A diesel locomotive is a type of railway locomotive in which the prime mover is a diesel engine. Several types of diesel locomotives have been developed, differing mainly in the means by which mechanical power is conveyed to the driving wheels ...

s built by

Krauss-Maffei KraussMaffei is a German manufacturer of injection molding machines, machines for plastics extrusion technology, and reaction process machinery. It was acquired by ChemChina in 2016. History Locomotives KraussMaffei was formed in 1931 from a me ...

(and

Babcock & Wilcox Babcock & Wilcox is an American renewable, environmental and thermal energy technologies and service provider that is active and has operations in many international markets across the globe with its headquarters in Akron, Ohio, USA. Historicall ...

) for the Spanish Railways. The design is similar in outward appearance and technology to the

DB Class V 200 DB Class V 200 (also known as Class 220) was the first series production diesel-hydraulic express locomotive of the German Deutsche Bundesbahn and – as Am 4/4 – of the SBB-CFF-FFS in Switzerland. History DB Service Five prototypes of t ...

. 32 units were built.

Background and History

The locomotives had a total power of from 2 motors (each a 16-cylinder

Maybach Maybach (, ) is a Automotive industry in Germany, German luxury car brand that exists today as a part of Mercedes-Benz. The original company was founded in 1909 by Wilhelm Maybach and his son Karl Maybach, originally as a subsidiary of ''Lufts ...

Mercedes Benz Mercedes-Benz (), commonly referred to as Mercedes and sometimes as Benz, is a German luxury and commercial vehicle automotive brand established in 1926. Mercedes-Benz AG (a Mercedes-Benz Group subsidiary established in 2019) is headquartere ...

MD870) diesel engine. Hydraulic transmissions used were two

Mekydro A torque converter is a type of fluid coupling that transfers rotating power from a prime mover, like an internal combustion engine, to a rotating driven load. In a vehicle with an automatic transmission, the torque converter connects the power ...

K184. The contract consisted of a series of 32 units which were shipped between 1966 and 1969, ten manufactured in Germany by Krauss-Maffei and the remaining twenty-two manufactured Spain by Babcock & Wilcox. The locomotives were similar to the V 200.1 Series of the Deutsche Bundesbahn, but with more power, more weight and slightly longer. The units were conceived as locomotives for passenger services, with a maximum speed of , but then were also used for freight trains which together with inadequate maintenance led to many failures in this series. None are currently in service and 30 of the 32 units have been scrapped, the ''4020'' (''Renfe 340 020'') is in the ''Museo del Ferrocarril de Madrid'' and the ''4026'' (''Renfe 340 026'') is in the process of being restored by the AZAFT (''Asociación Zaragozana de Amigos del Ferrocarril y Tranvías'').

References

External links

Museo del Ferrocarril de Madrid
Spanish national rail museum website

''fototrenes.tranvia.org''

from ''railfaneurope.net''
List of class 340 locomotives
''www.listadotren.es'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Renfe Class 340

340 Year 340 (Roman numerals, CCCXL) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Acindynus and Valerius (or, less frequently, year 1093 ...

B-B locomotives Diesel locomotives of Spain 5 ft 6 in gauge locomotives Railway locomotives introduced in 1966 Passenger locomotives Streamlined diesel locomotives

Background and History

References

Further reading

External links