#3355· Baureihe 140

DB Class E 40

🇩🇪 Germany ·built by Friedrich Krupp AG· from 1957· class of 879 German electric locomotives

10 photos from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences

1. Baureihe 140 866-5: Thomas Wolf ( Der Wolf im Wald )· CC BY-SA 3.0
2. 139 558-1, Германия, Саксония, станция Дрезден-Центральный (Trainpix 213268): RUNAWAYTRAIN· CC BY-SA 4.0
3. Lok E 40 128 (2010-04-03 39): Lothar Spurzem· CC BY-SA 2.0 de
4. DB-Baureihe E 10 - 110 262-3: PMalus· CC BY-SA 4.0
5. Himmelreich- E 40 im Bahnhof; mit Präsident der ED Karlsruhe, Güntert - LABW - Staatsarchiv Freiburg W 134 Nr. 037016a: Willy Pragher· CC BY 4.0
6. Himmelreich- E 40 im Bahnhof; mit Präsident der ED Karlsruhe, Güntert - LABW - Staatsarchiv Freiburg W 134 Nr. 037016b: Willy Pragher· CC BY 4.0
7. Schluchsee- E 40 im Bahnhof, mit See - LABW - Staatsarchiv Freiburg W 134 Nr. 037018a: Willy Pragher· CC BY 4.0
8. Schluchsee- E 40 im Bahnhof, mit See - LABW - Staatsarchiv Freiburg W 134 Nr. 037018b: Willy Pragher· CC BY 4.0
9. 140 857-4 (Flickr 8375863368): Torsten Maue from Magdeburg, Deutschland· CC BY 2.0
10. 140 857-4 (Flickr 8375864576): Torsten Maue from Magdeburg, Deutschland· CC BY 2.0

what is it?

The Baureihe E 40 is a German Standard electric locomotive (German: Einheits-Elektrolokomotive) commissioned by the Deutsche Bundesbahn in 1955, designed for freight trains. Since the 1968 renumbering, it is listed as Class 140 and Class 139.

who runs it

Deutsche Bundesbahn Deutsche Bahn

base stats

speed 110 km/htop speed
power 3.7 MWpower output
weight 83 tin working order
built 879made 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 69 years ago, in 1957.
3.7 MW is about 44 family cars (~85 kW each) flat out.
Weighs about as much as 14 African elephants (~6 t each).
16.5 m long: about 4 cars parked nose to tail.

electric locomotive: Draws power from overhead wires or a third rail and pulls separate carriages.

spec sheet

built: 1957–1973
number built: 879
kind: electric
traction: electric
origin: 🇩🇪 Germany
builders: Friedrich Krupp AG, Henschel & Sohn, KraussMaffei, Siemens Mobility, AEG, ABB Group, Lokomotiv- und Waggonbaufabrik Krupp
operators: Deutsche Bundesbahn, Deutsche Bahn
top speed: 110 km/h
power: 3.7 MW
gauge: 1,435 mm standard gauge
electric system: 15 kV 16.7 Hz Catenary
wheel arrangement: Bo′Bo′
length: 16.5 m
weight: 83 t
Dutch name: Baureihe 140

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

Sources: Wikidata Q567335, Wikipedia: DB Class E 40 (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-25.