AMTRAK's big power


DakotaLove39

DakotaLove39

Always Improvising
I've seen a couple models of Amtrak Dash-9's, but I have never actually seen a real one. I had expected to see one or two on my trip to Essex Montana, but the Empire Builder as headed by 3-4 Genesis locos. Where does Amtrak run its Dash-9's?
 
THey aren't actually "Dash 9's". They are P32-8B. The differences are these: 1) They have 3200 horsepower (versus the 4400 of a Dash 9), They have only have 2-axle trucks (versus the 6 axles on a Dash 9). They're also shorter, have a smaller fuel tank, and have HEP (Head end power).

As for where they run - The ones I've seen were all on the Coast Starlight between Seattle & Los Angeles. A couple got sold to Amtrak California, and I've seen one or two on the Amtrak Cascades Talgo trains.
 
I knew for sure they were a "dash" something.. vague memories don't differentiate between 8 and 9 series. Thanks much for the answer though.
 
They're not actually "sold" to Amtrak California. Amtrak California is run but the state, but all equipment is Amtrak's, just paid for by California.

In any case, there's not many, so they're a rare find.
 
I figured they were only used to rescue stalled trains. I can see how the power of a single unit would come in handy for that.
 
MP42PH...! :) Only problem with the MPXpress units is they're too tall. Remember the reasoning behind the short squat AMD-103 (P40/P42) is so that it clears all Amtrak routes.
 
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