#3394

British Rail Class 119

🇬🇧 United Kingdom ·built by Gloucester Railway Carriage and Wagon Company· from 1958· class of 28 two- and three car diesel multiple units built by GRCW

🚆 multiple unit diesel retired

9 photos from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences

1. Gloucester RC&W Co Class 119 Cross Country 3 car dmu W51077, W59420, W51105 (8327138452): Hugh Llewelyn· CC BY-SA 2.0
2. 119 L575: Murgatroyd49· CC BY-SA 4.0
3. Class 119 C590 at Wokingham in May 1981: The Basingstoker· CC BY-SA 2.0
4. Class 119 DMU L584 at Crowthorne in 1981: The Basingstoker· CC BY-SA 2.0
5. Class 119 L580 at Wokingham in April 1981: The Basingstoker· CC BY-SA 2.0
6. Class 119 L586 at Wokingham in April 1981 (1): The Basingstoker· CC BY-SA 2.0
7. Class 119 L586 at Wokingham in April 1981 (2): The Basingstoker· CC BY-SA 2.0
8. Class 119 set L579 at Crowthorne in 1981: The Basingstoker· CC BY-SA 2.0
9. Class 119 Set L594 at Reading in Oct 1994: The Basingstoker· CC BY-SA 2.0

Read about it on Wikipedia ↗

what is it?

The British Rail Class 119 DMUs were used throughout the Western Region and on services in the Midlands sourced by Tyseley Depot. Built by the Gloucester Railway Carriage & Wagon Co. Ltd, the body design was based on the Swindon Cross-Country sets, but with a Derby cab.

who runs it

British Rail Western Region of British Railways London Midland Region of British Railways

base stats

speed 113 km/htop speed
power 447 kWpower output
seats 34passengers
built 28made 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 68 years ago, in 1958.
447 kW is about 5 family cars (~85 kW each) flat out.
19.5 m long: about 4 cars parked nose to tail.
Served for 32 years (1958–1990).

multiple unit: A self-propelled train: motors are spread under the passenger cars, so no separate locomotive.

spec sheet

built: 1958
in service from: 1958
retired: 1990
status: retired
number built: 28
kind: multiple unit
traction: diesel
origin: 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
builders: Gloucester Railway Carriage and Wagon Company
operators: British Rail, Western Region of British Railways, London Midland Region of British Railways
top speed: 113 km/h
power: 447 kW
gauge: 1,435 mm standard gauge
formation: DMBC, Driving Motor Brake Composite-TSLRB, Trailer Second Buffet-DMSL, Driving Motor Second with lavatory
length: 19.5 m
capacity: 34 passengers

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

Sources: Wikidata Q4970719, Wikipedia: British Rail Class 119 (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-25.