#4004· Baureihe 420

DB Class 420

🇩🇪 Germany ·built by Linke-Hofmann· from 1969· class of 480 German 3-car electric multiple units

10 photos from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences

1. DB 420 001: Michael Heimerl· CC BY-SA 3.0
2. Wiesbaden- Bahnhof Wiesbaden Ost- auf Bahnsteig zu Gleis 3- Richtung Mainz- S-Bahn Rhein-Main 420 757-7 26.6.2010: Wikimedia-User Jivee Blau· CC BY-SA 3.0
3. Baureihe 420 München: Austin Ring· CC BY-SA 4.0
4. DB 420 (14.09.1985): Manfred Kopka· CC BY-SA 4.0
5. DB 420 001 bright: DB_420_001.jpg : Michael Heimerl derivative work: Max-k muc ( talk )· CC BY-SA 3.0
6. DB BR 420 002-8, Blau-Weiß-Lackierung - (DE) Deutsches Verkehrsmuseum München - 26.04.2014 (14205600153): HintenRum· CC BY 2.0
7. 145 078 mit Güterzug sowie S-Bahn (Baureihe 420) auf der Mainbrücke Kostheim: Joachim Seyferth· CC BY 4.0
8. 2007-12-18 Groß-Gerau Dornberg Bahnhof: Marco Major from Mörfelden-Walldorf, Deutschland· CC BY 2.0
9. 2-420-sbahn-koeln: Mosellaender· CC BY-SA 3.0
10. 4-420-sbahn-koeln: Mosellaender· CC BY-SA 3.0

what is it?

The Class 420 (German: Baureihe 420) is a commuter electric multiple unit train type in service on German S-Bahn networks since 1972. Their use in Munich during the 1972 Summer Olympics earned them the colloquial name Olympiatriebwagen (Olympic multiple unit).

who runs it

Deutsche Bundesbahn Deutsche Bahn Storstockholms Lokaltrafik DB Regio S-Bahn München

base stats

speed 120 km/htop speed
power 2.4 MWpower output
weight 8 tin working order
built 480made 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 57 years ago, in 1969.
2.4 MW is about 28 family cars (~85 kW each) flat out.
67.4 m long: about 15 cars parked nose to tail.

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

spec sheet

built: 1969
in service from: 1969
number built: 480
kind: multiple unit
traction: electric
origin: 🇩🇪 Germany
builders: Linke-Hofmann, Messerschmitt-Bölkow-Blohm, Orenstein & Koppel, DÜWAG, Waggon Union, MAN SE, Waggon- und Maschinenbau GmbH Donauwörth, Waggonfabrik Josef Rathgeber
operators: Deutsche Bundesbahn, Deutsche Bahn, Storstockholms Lokaltrafik, DB Regio, S-Bahn München
top speed: 120 km/h
power: 2.4 MW
gauge: 1,435 mm standard gauge
electric system: 15 kV 16.7 Hz AC overhead line
formation: 3 cars per trainset
length: 67.4 m
weight: 8 t
Dutch name: Baureihe 420

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

Sources: Wikidata Q834170, Wikipedia: DB Class 420 (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-25.