Amtrak Locomotive Tier List
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- Опубліковано 7 лют 2025
- You know me as the AmtrakGuy, but what Amtrak locomotives do I really like most? That's a question I've surprisingly not answered beyond the F40PH being my alltime favorite. So, I'm finally going to answer that using a somewhat definitive tier list while explaining why or why not I like a certain engine. Which ones do you like? Let me know in the comments below!
Music Used:
Sonic Jam - Digital Manual
OMORI - Let's Get Together Now!
Pizza Tower - hmmm look what u done did you found a secret
Super Mario 64 Beta - Bob-Omb Battlefield
Sonic Frontiers - Fishing Vibes
Deltarune - WELCOME TO THE CITY
Kirby Super Star - Mt. Dedede
Wii Shop Channel Main Theme
OMORI - Push & Shove
Team Fortress 2 - Playing With Danger
Toby Fox - Green Room
Deltarune - When I Get Happy I Dance Like This
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![Engines of Amtrak - Budd Metroliner [REMAKE]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/lXs8uaeQNRM/mqdefault.jpg)
Extra rankings since everyone is asking for them:
F/E Units: B Tier (classic design, but I still prefer the look of others)
GG1: B Tier (another classic design, Amtrak paint looks kinda meh on them)
FL9: A Tier (again, classic locomotive design but Amtrak paint actually looks really nice on them)
Thanks for watching the video! What do you think of my list and how would you rank all of these locomotives seen here? Also sorry if my commentary sounds a bit repetitive, I'm not the best with unscripted content, but I wanted to try it out here. Hopefully I'll get better with it in the future.
I agree
You said the S word
At 14:15 you said the S word
Did pretty good. Agreed with the decision to make a separate tier for the talgo.
this list is ass imagine rating rolling stock that's not in revenue service and a locomotive that was barely a year on the roster.... and the P30CH in A tier? your opinions are shit
Finally, the Amtrak guy makes an Amtrak tier list. Also, the reason the Avelia Liberty coaches don't align with the coaches is that when they tilt, they align with one of the two sides. They couldn't include the tilting tech in the power cars because it would make them too heavy. It grinds my gears too, but it's a design choice that even the acela 1s have if you look closely.
They don’t look the same because the power car is an off the shelf product, it’s the same power car they use on the TGVM’s
As the previous comment said. It’s because the power car is completely off the self. France has a smaller loading gauge than the US, so when the power cars are matched up with American sized cars, they don’t match up. Horrible design choices IMO.
I also want to tell you all the fact that the power cars are off the shelf. aaaahhhhh that felt goooof
His career is complete
7 months is a good length of time for another person who no one asked to let you know that they were off the shelf
Whether it's that or to line up on curves, it still ain't look right.
Man,
Amtrakguy went it all out on the Talgo 😂
No wonder 😂
This is where the fun begins
Very tru
14:09 made me laugh with what he said about the “Talgo series 8 cab car” and called it ugly
Pretty good tier list of all of these Amtrak locomotives. I think all of them are beautiful. On going. Pretty good engines out there even though it’s a shame some of them are scrapped, mainly the GE P30CH. Happy St. Patrick’s Day, AmtrakGuy365.
I’d bump the Dash 8’s to S (I have a Railking model of one and we had a couple here in Orlando at one point) and the turbocharger to A/B, but that’s about it. All your S tier choices especially make perfect sense. They ARE the locomotives of Amtrak.
I think he doesnt like them i agree with you tho
I totally agree with the SDP40F placement, I too love the little smiles they have.
I find it hilarious that you they still smiled regardless of how many times they derailed
Right off the bat ranking a loco A-tier because it vaguely looks like it's smiling. This is why I love your stuff.
it's really interesting to see other railfan's opinions in this regard, my list would be completely different and yet I still enjoy seeing your list and hearing your reasons for your placements.
14:14 “it’s an ugly piece of shit” bro had enough with the Taglo Cab car
Bro just pissed off the entirety of PNW railfans 😂
I freaking love the F40PH, I've always liked '70s and '80s stuff to begin with, but the F40PH is literally the epitome of that. I even see the "NPCU Cabbage Car" in the Cascades too!
I agree. The NPCU Cabbage car is also used on the Downeaster route running from Boston North Station to Brunswick, Maine.
In Germany we have a joke within the railfan community. The company name is the abbreviation for "Sicher ist eins, man erhält nur Schrott" (English: One for sure - all you get is scrap). Seems it applies to their US products as well.
Shitty in engine manufacturing, equipment not suitable
That’s another way to put it lol
Will try to remember it in case I need in in English again...
As someone who has been a railfan for 50+ years and who has ridden Amtrak for all but one of those years (didn't ride in 1972 or 2020), I enjoyed viewing your video. I agree with most of your ratings, particularly for the Talgo which looks like a toy inspired by a child's cartoon. At first, I did not like the looks of Amtrak's Genesis locomotives, but I eventually warmed up to them and really like the chug-chug sound and enjoy seeing them on the Amtrak's Pennsylvanian train. I evenpurchased an HO-scale model of the 156 in the Phase 1 paint scheme and have ordered the 100 in the Midnight Blue scheme. Thanks for sharing. This was a fun video to watch.
9 months late, but what happened in 1972!?
@@ahdog8 maybe he wasn't born yet
@@LongIslandRailfanner true
My first mainline cabride was in SDP40F #603. Charleston to Huntington, WV October 1975.
I recall running over a tv antenna lying on the track.
Jesus...were you alright?
AEM7: *retires
The Railfan community: “A sad anime death”
I love the great Nintendo game songs You add in the background. You are ASS LOADS of awesome!
I actually really like SC44 chargers, especially with that dark-blue livery. Maybe it's just that so many of my trips behind Genesis engines have been on the Texas Eagle, which is naturally prone to breakdowns, so I've always been eager to see what comes next in efficiency and reliability. Since my region- upper midwest- isn't likely to get high-speeders any decade soon, the charger is basically the only game in town for us other than the genesis. Fingers crossed for the Northern Lights Express.
.........
*Are you okay?*
@@LongIslandRailfanner Yes. Why?
@@LongIslandRailfanner the sc44 is better than the alc42 though
@@TrainStreet it's still kinda ugly and has the same reliability problems as the ALC 42s
@@LongIslandRailfanner The Genesis units are far uglier and the ALC-42s and SC-44s don't have as many issues now as teething issues are being resolved
14:10 yep, looks like those Talgo's got hit by the ugly stick a few thousand times.
If you love the F40, come ride the Downeaster. We have a bunch of cabs that have been converted into NPCUs, so they're still kind of running up here.
You made sure to point out at the beginning that this list would be more subjective, which is great. That being said, I think a follow up video using technical specifications, service history, etc. would be appropriate
Well done and nearly concur with just about them all! Great little fun video. BTW, not harsh enough on the Talgo and Liberties (those horns; uggh!).
Yay, somebody else who actually remembers _There Goes A Train!_ 😀 Me personally, it's nice to see the newer Charger locomotives against the well-aged Amtrak fleet, but I really only see them shuttling between Pontiac and Detroit. Between Detroit and Chicago still seems to be predominantly Genesis locos...?
Have you ever considered working for amtrak? I just started a few months ago and as a mechanically minded, diet foamer, and Im having a great time.
regarding the chargers sucking in snow. I previously interviewed with siemens and we discussed that. The person interviewing me figured out that issue and the solution. the specifics is there is an air duct running through the rear of the locomotive, from the ground up to the resister arrays. usually it pushes air up and away. however if it detects that there is snow or ice blocking the entrance down at the bottom it should reverse the fan direction so it blows hot air on the ice and snow, melting them. however the computer still warns you if you are operating it in conditions below 50f, which frankly is a ridiculous minimum temperature.
The Talgo part made me laugh so hard 😂
Edit: Guys, stop arguing about words! So what if he used swear words? And so what if someone dislikes the use of swear words? I will say that I did not expect the word 'shit' to be used many times in this video, but that doesn't mean you have to feel entitled to mock those who dislike them!
Edit 2: Are you seriously going to stop watching someone's videos just because of a word..
Edit 3: OH MY GOD THEY'RE JUST WORDS STOP FIGHTING
Same it made me laugh soooooooo hard I almost Choked lmao
@@TWF1003 boo hoo go tell the teacher
It's so accurate
It looks like a car.
@@TWF1003 fuck
@@TWF1003 Shiver Me Timbers
alright I must admit I'm excited to see what Amtrak does with the new Charger stuff.
Have the same thoughts for the F40. There goes a train was a major but also living in Chicago was a plus. I got to see them a few times a month and i always loved them.
I had no idea how long they'd been around or that Amtrak had been phasing them out, same with Santa Fe and plenty of other lines I thought we're still around and thier engines.
Along with the Big Boy, those powerful long lasting beasts will always be my favorite. Anytime i take a drive into the city or near a line and see them still powering on i smile, knowing they're still here always makes me happy
Also had no idea we're the same age. Pretty cool
I’m a train 364/365 Michigander, but last summer I spent some time on the east coast. The Acela train sets are showing age, they really rattle and don’t ride as nice as they should for the cost. Still worth “at least once” status. I also came to respect the ALC-42, they’re solid workhorses and they’re underrated here.
Also gotta say I do miss the Genesis on the blue water😢
I'm late to the party on this posting, it showed up on my recommended list the other day for the first time. I go back to pre-Amtrak. I'm old enough (67) to have ridden passenger trains as a kid before Amtrak, including some name trains like the Super Chief and the original Capitol Ltd. Yes, Fred Harvey dining car service was as good as they said it was; first time I ever saw or used a finger bowl in a restaurant situation. Anyway, I have always loved passenger trains and wanted to work for Amtrak from my college years, and finally got there in my late 20s, spending 14 years as a LSA out of DC, before moving on to CSX and engine service (it blows my mind that Amtrak removed the counter doors from all of the Amcafes, they had trash cans in them we used all the time. Also how do you keep passengers out from behind your counter?). It's interesting that your aesthetic sense of a number of these units matches up with their reliability reputations, but not entirely. The two units that are pretty universally considered to be the most successful Amtrak locomotives so far are the F40PH and the AEM7. They saved Amtrak's bacon in it's first decade, and their longevity gives them iconic status. BTW, the wavy side sheeting on the AEM7s and Budd coaches is called "fluting". I'm of the Phase III era, so that's my favorite scheme, but I'm kind of liking the new Phase VII midnight blue scheme on the Chargers. I always thought the P40/42s were clunky looking. They also have a propensity for having engine fires and will probably not be sorely missed by the mechanical people when they are gone, although at least one should be preserved, just like one of the P30CHs should have been but wasn't. GEs, if they are not well taken care of, will have engine fire issues, whereas the two-cycle EMDs ran like champs with minimal servicing. I am old enough to have ridden both the United Aircraft Turbo Train and the original Metroliners. Both had their problems, but again I wish the three car UAC Turbo set had been saved. The SDP40Fs probably got too bad of a rap for derailing, mostly because of PennCentral/early-Conrail bad track. They were a compromise unit, a freight loco that was modified to quickly get into passenger service and could be quickly reconverted to freight if Amtrak went belly-up early on. The new Avelia Liberty set power cars look like a Duck-Billed Platypus to me, not feeling the love. I'm concerned about how well they will hold up under typical U. S. abuse.
Good video
I agree with you about the p30ch and aem-7
Thanks for making this!
More tier lists please, this was a great watch
Nah, Turbotrain is legit my favorite, I love how doofy it looks, it's so cute
I respect the F59 placements. I grew up riding behind them on NCDOT so my bias would have put them in S tier. Great video as always
"There Goes a Train" is such a core memory - I watched that thing countless times on VHS as a kid and remember finding it on youtube one day to much delight. I came away from that smitten with Santa Fe and also the "new genesis" locomotives, specifically the phase III P40DC. I also spent my early childhood in SoCAL and so the Amtrak Surfliner F59PHIs were my favorites to watch
I remember seeing the genesis on there goes a train and I absolutely loved the design.
“No matter how many times they derail …… A Tier.”
lol love it!
I'm proud to have personally worked with the F40PH locomotives in the GCRY fleet, especially No. 237
Love the metroliner and the pooch
No offense taken on this at all because i TOTALLY AGREE!! You did the Talgo locomotive so bad lol!! You had me laughing at that part! 🤣 100% agree with you!
NGL the new Charger train set looks cleaner than the actual engine. I particularly like the F59PHi and Avelia since they look like straight aerodynamic BEASTS
The SDP40F better be god tier
The saddest day in railroad history: Amtrak retires the P40s
Can’t wait for the Urbanists to rage about how the Chargers aren’t number one
"BuT wHY iS iTT nOT ToP TEAr!!¿?!?!?!?? ÆÆÆÆÆÆĄÆÆ"
Based comment. Gotta love those types of “Railfans” that refuse to acknowledge anything older than their Iphones.
For what you did say about the Charger locomotives Jared, well, some of them have had circumstances for select intercity Amtrak routes, but it's very confusing because Brightline's have been working fine along with some commuter railroads. Luckily, Siemens DID work together with Amtrak to analyze everything with the ALC-42's and those seem to be doing fine now.
Interesting on how Amtrak Chargers break down during the winter or now fall while Via Rail Chargers are working fine this winter season, two train sets running every Tuesday since November.
We, and the world, needed this.
Bro roasted so hard the Talgo 8 cab car train set
F40HP is one of my favorite Amtrak trains to :)
I have been waiting for this one.
I honestly feel the same way for the VIA rail f40ph's, lots of nostalgia related to them being a kid in the 2000's.
Also, HARD disagree on the D-tier placements. The turbotrain is by far one of my favorite trainsets, though CN's was a lot better looking when compared to gen 1 amtrak paint. The genset is nice because it's unique, and it looks like a proper shunting and utility loco, making it look well suited for its position.
As a Charger person, Yea......
Other than it dying like every damn winter storm, it looks nice.
Can I just say how you incorporated welcome to the city from dr is just genius? Like as an underground railfan, when I saw the playthru of deltarune in cyber city, I thought oh yeah this is some nice music when trains basically or... when that one npc said "public transit" i connected it all together!
Lol no explanation needed for the f40ph
He roasted the talgo 😂😅
The talgo and turbo look very awesome imo.
Then again I have a thing for unique and odd designs
4:30 couldn't agree w/ you more. they're my favorite loco of all time, *mainly Septa's for the extremely custom tuned horn* but also bc I saw em a good amount of times during my childhood ( i live a mile from the keystone corridor) so yeah, my favorite.
Amtrakguy: Chargers aren't that bad.
Also AmtrakGuy: Cusses on camera because of a Talgo (It's the other way around for me)
I’m not gonna get offended, I’m just a train.
how are you typing if your a train (sarcasm)
A lot of retired F40's are being used now as Cabbage Cars. They had a sharp, dignified look to them.
When ever i hear Amtrak, i think of the P42, the F40PH and and the F59PHI.
Same
The video we all needed
The UA Turbos were great to ride in the dome car, they were loud and had issues but were fun to ride
11:33 Its a similar story with the Hitachi AT300s (Classes 800 to 803) here in the UK From Leaking Air Conditioning Units, Overheating Engines, Software Issues, Problematic Power Changeover Sequences to Cracks in the Lifting Brackets and now Fatigue and Cracks in the Body Shells, The list goes on...
Same Here with the EMD DM/DE30AC here on the Long Island Railroad hey mainly suffer from Electrical problems but thats about it
I'm Not Offended & I Like Ur Content Yhat I Watch And I Love The Cute Smile On The SDP40F❤❤
I fucking lost it at the Charger and Talgo parts. The Talgo does look like a car/truck hybrid. I absolutely hate both of those locomotives, and I couldn't agree more. The fact you created entire bad catagories for them is perfect, and you put the F40PH (my favorite locomotive) in S tier makes this even more awesome than it is. Thank you, AmtrakGuy!
The Talgo part is not a locomotive, it's a cab car
I can't 😂😂 that part got me so bad
damn.. took that f59ph rating to heart. they did amazing for go transit for years, i understand this is an amtrak perspective, but they used to push and pull 10 bi levels no problem, with beautiful k5LA’s.
I hope Amtrak keeps the Genesis engines on service until the Chargers work properly
They are starting to work properly
The only changes I would make on my tier list would be to bump the Dash 8 up to A (always had a weird love for them, not sure why), and to put the Acela in S. I know it’s childhood bias from growing up on the east coast in the late 90s and early 2000s, but that is the first train I ever remember vividly, and I’m glad I got to take a ride on one as a kid from DC up the NEC
14:14 🤣🤣 bro the way you said it was pretty funny
0:53 yep, I always pictured that, especially on steam locomotives when they have the hand rail on their smokebox foot
14:55 this part cracked me up
@@TWF1003 Leave Then.
@Trimetwes Fan1003 Yes, he did. Don't ever bash my opinions
Nahh AmtrakGuy365 Defied the laws of physics or computer gravity to make Talgo tier and it makes it even funnier...
Amtrakguy365, Amtrak Cascades is still running their f40ph fleet and a few of the other f40s that Amtrak had. P42 Genesis locomotives should be able to get in to a few preservation museums I hope because they are very iconic to Amtrak. I also agree about the Talgo 8 series. They designed a car/truck/train
The F40PH units have their prime movers removed and have been converted into either regular cab cars or cab/baggage ("cabbage") cars.
@ that right... I forgot that they didn't put baggage doors onsome of them
What do you mean?! The talgo is perfect, reeeeeeeee s+ tier. I’m so offended
I mostly agree with your opinions but I think the dash 8 should be in a tier but also I saw a alc-42 charger for the first time not to long ago
Maybe I haven’t been on your channel long enough, but I don’t think I’ve ever heard you swear until the Talgo rant. It makes your ranting natural and and genuine, and that says enough about how you feel about them 💀
Ngl the Talgo 8 cab car really does look like a road vehicle on rails😂 LMAO
Just a suggestion for a future video AmtrakGuy365, do a video on the SNCF Class CC 21000 French electric locomotive. You could use that as a jumping-off-point for other videos, the French made a large number of them, the French had similar looking locomotives for various lines and in various makes, marks, and liveries: also these locomotives were { and still are } in service for a long time, and the design was copied in other countries, also, Amtrak actually browed one for testing in 1977. One little thing more, I watched "There Goes A Train" and some other videos in that series so much, I remember watching "There Goes A Train" so far back, I loved that video, it's nice to hear from someone else who enjoyed that VHS tape as a kid as well! I wish you well in future videos.
14:12 the first time I have ever heard Jared say a swear word.
I remember when Amtrak had F40PH as there primary power
I have a second Buick Terraza painted like SDP40F #644, the only one left, in Amtrak's phase III color scheme.
5-stars for using the word "lambasted"
I totally agree about everything F-45 looking
Well that was certainly interesting. Family friendly channel that talks about trains in a very meme-like fashion- “this train looks like an ugly piece of shit.” I’m not disagreeing, I was just surprised.
Because of Metra, The F40PH is a Coolio locomotive to me
That's right man! You better put that Genny up in S tier man! That thang is a legend!
The reason for retaining the plate on the front of the GP40s is so that the passenger gangways don't smash the railings, iirc.
Love the F-40ph's, and have tons of love for those old school P-30ph's "POOCHES".....
great train video sir
When I think of Amtrak, the Genesis is exactly what pops up in my mind.
Atleast Amtrak won’t need to worry about their GE’s blowing turbochargers anymore they’re completely phased out. I do hope they work out the charger kinks. But your charger attitude makes me wander how they could have better luck with long range adapted EMD F125’s or MPI MP54AC’s.
The MP54AC would be so off for long-distance trains to me
The proper video we needed:
U ACS-64 #637????
liking for "friend-shaped diesel" now i need to find a P-30 and give it a hug
They've all been scraped
In my opinion is the SC-44 alright looking. I warmed up to it a long time ago since railfan in California and there's lots of them but I think you will warm up to the ALC-42 since they have the same style cab as the ACS-64
I agree with you, although I would put the f59ph’ s and the f69phi’s in the same tier because I live near somewhat close to Los Angeles so I would see f59ph’s hauling Metrolink trains, so for me it’s just childhood biases
HHP-8 is the Curséd dollar store Acela, deserves D-tier
ive been Trainmaxxing so hard recently and its all because i rewatched this guy's trainz 12 crashing video
Amtrakguy on the talgos: im about to end this engines whole career
I know these technically aren't Amtrak locomotives, as they were inherited from the Penn Central (who inherited them from the New Haven), but since the GP40TC was on this list... I absolutely *adore* the FL9.
This locomotive has that iconic "bulldog nose" and streamlined carbody the F-Units are known for, but paired to Amtrak Phase II and Phase III (also Phase I for the other F-Units)? Dear God.
Plus, the concept of a dual-mode locomotive is really neat and was revolutionary for its time, and the Hancock Air Whistles and K5LAs sounded magnificent on them.
Oh, and having practically 40 years of service under their belts by the time Amtrak retired them? Absolute *Chad* of a locomotive.
I may very well be the only FL9 foamer in existence, but goddamnit I love these diesels. That is all.
Suddenly the TF2 theme starts, haha nice.
I love the via charger/venture when I went to quebec city I made sure that I was exclusively on them (mostly because the interiors are nicer)
Honestly, I agree with your opinion on the chargers. I also want to say that the new K5LA horns on them are not even as good as the ones on locomotives like the genesis or the F59PHI.
The F40 in S tier is something i can agree with being Canadian. VIAs units are of a newer updated model from 1987 but that only accentuates it's greatness. Reliable, rugged, sturdy, dependable are words i'd use to describe these units. There's a very good reason why they rebuilt each unit with better everything. The units are showing no sign of slowing down any time soon and there's talks of another major overhaul coming for them so they'll get trundling down the tracks with long distance and remote region trains for many years to come. Also they're F units and i think part of that plays into their appeal. I also somewhat agree with you on the charger aesthetic. Personally i don't like any of the variants out there. I think VIAs nose design looks unfinished.
Me at the beginning of this video. If the Genesis isn't S class I'm rioting 😂