#1100
NZR WE class
🇳🇿 New Zealand ·built by New Zealand Railways Department· from 1902· class of 3 New Zealand 4-6-4T locomotives
what is it?
The NZR WE Class were rebuilt from earlier Sharp Stewart built B class locomotives. In service, the first two were tried on the Rimutaka Incline, however, they lacked the required adhesion on the 1 in 15 (6.67%) grade. They were later transferred to Greymouth for use on the Rewanui Incline, where they were far more successful, on the railway line's 1 in 25 (4%) grade.
who runs it
base stats
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 124 years ago, in 1902.
steam locomotive: Burns coal, wood or oil to boil water; the steam drives pistons that turn the wheels.
spec sheet
- built
- 1902–1943
- retired
- 1969
- status
- retired
- number built
- 3
- kind
- Steam
- traction
- steam
- origin
- 🇳🇿 New Zealand
- builders
- New Zealand Railways Department
- operators
- New Zealand Railways Department
- top speed
- —
- power
- —
- gauge
- 1,067 mm Cape gauge
- wheel arrangement
- 4-6-4T
From the Wikipedia infobox and Wikidata. Blank means the sources don't say.
Sources: Wikidata Q16927146, Wikipedia: NZR WE class (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-25.