#3957

DB Class 218

🇩🇪 Germany ·built by Friedrich Krupp AG· from 1968· class of 410 German diesel-hydraulic locomotives

10 photos from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences

1. Db-218395-01-c: K. Jähne· CC BY-SA 3.0
2. 218 813-4 Köln Hbf, 2013: Lars Steffens· CC BY-SA 2.0
3. DB 218 168-3 1: MPW57· Public domain
4. DB 218 209-5 1: MPW57· Public domain
5. DB 218 217-8-800-64-27: Wikimedia Commons· CC BY-SA 3.0
6. BR 218 419-0 Traktionswechsel: Tobias Daubitzer· CC BY-SA 4.0
7. 2 DB-Dieselloks BR 218 mit EC von Zürich: JoachimKohler-HB· CC BY-SA 4.0
8. DB 218 422 + EC194 (50915648917): Nelso Silva from Porto, Portugal· CC BY-SA 2.0
9. DB 218 423-2 Doppeltraktion vor SBB: Ordercrazy· CC0
10. BR 218 453-9: Huhu· Public domain

what is it?

The DB Class 218 (before 1968 the DB Class V 164) are a class of 4-axle, diesel-hydraulic locomotives acquired by the Deutsche Bundesbahn for use on main and secondary lines for both passenger and freight trains. The class represents the final major revision of the DB V 160 family of locomotives; having the preferred features of the antecedent locomotives, including a hydrodynamic brake, and a single engine providing electrical train heating via a generator as well as tractive power. The class were also the most numerous of the family, providing the backbone of the Deutsche Bundesbahn's main-line diesel locomotive traction from the 1970s up to the reunification of Germany.

who runs it

Deutsche Bahn Deutsche Bundesbahn

base stats

speed 140 km/htop speed
power 2.1 MWpower output
weight 79.5 tin working order
built 411made in total

Bars compare against all trains: 600 km/h (maglev), 1,700 seats; power, weight and number built on a log scale up to 20 MW, 1,000 t and 20,000 built.

fun facts

First built 58 years ago, in 1968.
Top speed is 1.1× a car on the Dutch motorway (130 km/h).
2.1 MW is about 24 family cars (~85 kW each) flat out.
Weighs about as much as 13 African elephants (~6 t each).
16.4 m long: about 4 cars parked nose to tail.

diesel locomotive: A diesel engine on board drives the wheels, usually through a generator (diesel-electric).

spec sheet

built: 1968–1979
in service from: 1968
number built: 411
kind: Diesel-hydraulic
traction: diesel
origin: 🇩🇪 Germany
builders: Friedrich Krupp AG, Henschel & Sohn, KraussMaffei, Maschinenbau Kiel, Lokomotiv- und Waggonbaufabrik Krupp
operators: Deutsche Bahn, Deutsche Bundesbahn
top speed: 140 km/h
power: 2.1 MW
gauge: 1,435 mm standard gauge
wheel arrangement: Bo′Bo′
length: 16.4 m
weight: 79.5 t

From the Wikipedia infobox and Wikidata. Blank means the sources don't say.

Sources: Wikidata Q564855, Wikipedia: DB Class 218 (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-25.