DB Class E 40 - The standard electric loco for freight traffic
The layman knows her as the ‘typical’ old, red locomotive. Widely traveled with her in black and white paint the Brenner Pass. The locomotives of the DB series E 40 series have a long operational history and are among the longest-serving locomotives of Deutsche Bahn. The trains have proven themselves with a starting tractive force of 275 kN and a continuous output of 3,700 kW. With four traction motors, the drive takes place via a rubber ring spring.
From 1957-1973, 879 locomotives were built by Krupp, Henschel, Krauss-Maffei, SSW, BBC and AEG. After Deutsche Bahn began planning the use of a single-unit electric locomotive for freight traffic in 1950, the construction of the DB Class E 40 locomotive began in 1957. For the first time in history, train drivers were to be able to do their work sitting down. The E 40 series comprises 879 units and is thus the most successful of the electric locomotives of Deutsche Bahn. Since the 70s, the electric locomotive Class E 40 was used after a speed upgrade from 100 km / h to 110 km / h and the extension to Wendezugbetrieb and double traction in passenger transport.
| Manufacturer mech. part: | Krupp, Henschel, Krauss-Maffei |
| Manufacturer electr. part: | SSW, BBC, AEG |
| Length: | 16,490 mm |
| Numbering: | E 40 / 140 001-879 E 40. 11: 31 examples with E-brakes: E 40 1131-1137 E 40 1163-1166 E 40 1309-1316 E 40 1552-1563 taken from E 40 numbers, from 1968 designated as EDV series 139; to this came a further eighteen locomotives through conversion from class 110 |
| Weight: | 83.0 t |
| Years of construction: | 1957-1973 139: 1959/60, 1964/65 |
| Top speed: | 100 km/h, later 110 km/h |
| Retirement: | 1999 - 2016 (DB) |
| Number: | 879 |
| Power: | 3700 kW |
| Propulsion: | Rubber ring spring |
| Traction motors: | 4 |
| Power system: | 15 kV 16 2/3 Hz AC |
| Attractive force: | 275 kN |
| Brake: | single-release Knorr air brake; additional brake 139 also electric brakes Permanent power: 3600 kW |
| Train protection: | PZB, Sifa |
| Axle formula: | Bo'Bo' |
| Interesting facts |
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| The DB Class E 40 electric locomotive belongs to the Bo'Bo' construction type. The Bo'Bo' type has two individually driven axles in each of two different frame bogies. More interesting facts |
The application area of the DB Class E 40
The field of application of the DB Class E 40 shifted over the decades from Höllental, via Offenburg, Mannheim to Munich, from where it also traveled the route via Austria to the Brenner Pass. Six of them are still used there today. The locomotives of the E40 series, renamed 1968 in E139, are retired since 2004. At present there are still 7 units in operation. However, there are still 95 pieces of the DB Class E 40, 68 have a valid main investigation. They are waiting for special operations and serve as reserve vehicles. Three locomotives can already be found in museums in Neuenmarkt-Wirsberg and Koblenz.