Brookville BL36PH engine purchase

Yesterday (Wednesday, April 2nd) I took a Tri-Rail ride from Fort Lauderdale to Miami and back. The train had a road switcher both ways and we had the older cars SB and the new Rotem cars NB. One time and uneventful both ways. I personally like the older cars much better than the new ones. At the Tri-Rail facility in Hialeah from the moving train I saw a couple of the new units sitting outside the shop but they were blcoked at least partially by other equipment. They were sitting in the same spot on my return about five hours later. I also rode Metro-Rail into the Miami Airport and the new Tri-Rail Station looks about finished but there is no word as to when it will be ready for trains nor just how they expect to accomodate Amtrak there either. Typical Florida operation, it takes forever for things to happen here.
I also rode around town on both Metro-Rail and Metro-Mover and both were pleasant and uneventful. It might not be the greatest but there is no other place in Florida that has anything to equal it, net even close.
Noel Weaver

I believe one new unit went to TTC in pueblo for testing, until that is done, those new Brookvilles can not be used.
not even on test trains.

I stopped for a NB Tri-Rail at a nearby crossing a little while ago, I was not the first car at the crossing and it was pouring rain, we are in the rainy season here now, but I am pretty sure that NB Tri-Rail had one of the new locomotives, if so it will be the first time that I have seen one on a train and I see Tri-Rail trains just about every day and some days I see several of them. On a railroad with 50 trains a day that is not hard to do. I will advise when I see one next time.
Noel Weaver

Saw one on P619 while waiting for my Amtrak train in Delray Beach on Wednesday (6/11).

One of the new engines was on 619 (10:08 AM at Fort Lauderdale) today. I did not get the number because it was wet outside and I just got to the head end as the train was leaving. There were a bunch of these units still in the yard at Hialeah which probably have not completed acceptance testing. Rode to Miami and back early today, on time both ways and passed a lot of stalled traffic on I-95 in both directions. We are very lucky to have this service in these parts and I use it from time to time.
Noel Weaver

I rode Tri-Rail on two different days this week and most noticeable was a lot of the new Brookville Engines on the trains. They have a good number of them running. Two of my trains had them with no apparent problems. I have to wonder if the maintenance is a bit better on Tri-Rail than on Metro-North. All four trains that I rode and in fact all of the trains that I saw were on or very close to schedule both days as well. All in all two good days.\
Noel Weaver

keyboardkat wrote:The MTU engine used will require 20 cylinders to produce 3600hp, sort of like the old SD-45s, although the MTU is a four-stroke cycle engine and the EMD 645 is a two-stroke cycle engine. But MPI produced 3600hp from a 16-cylinder 645 clone. I'd like to know more about MPIs new AC traction locomotive....

The MPI GEVO-12 has 188L displacement 4600hp vs. 95L 3600hp for the Brookville MTU 20V 4000 R43 according to those wikipedia articles linked above. So it's surprising that the GE motor has 100% more displacement but gets only 28% more power than the German motor. I'm confused.

The GEVO is rated conservatively; the MTU is rated quite aggressively.

The MTU engine also operates at a much higher range of RPMs and so is getting more combustion in the same amount of displacement. We'll see how well they wear in railroad service.