ACeInTheHole wrote:Budd, its also not like every single Sprinter had problems these last couple of days anyway, so I dont see why we even need to waste our time defending them because 625 tripped on a test run.
Ill reiterate for the rest of you, 625 had the shortest end of the stick thus far temperaturewise, it didnt have the luxury of the ginger Spring/Summer/Fall temperatures that 603-624 had. Also, to back up Budds ALP46 statement, even the mighty GG1 had issues one winter with fine snow getting into certain systems and shorting them out, I dont remember the exact details, but bottom line every single Amtrak locomotive from the GG1 down has had problems at one point. 612 has been the only perennial head case thus far with Sprinters, out of 25 in service, and even its most recent issues i will give it credit have only required recycles to fix.
The fact that you would make this ludicrous comment shows that you are ill informed, although it isn't necessarily your fault.
Allow me to reiterate something to you, Aceinthehole.
You basically know what trickles to you through alternate means. In other words, if no one mentions it to you, you're probably not going to know. People that are dealing with these engines on a daily basis are not particularly pleased. Unfortunately, most have grown silent (and you remember why and is the reason I haven't posted in months.) If it was just a matter of the 625 (which didn't actually have an engine issue) or the 612 (which shows how out of it you really are because that is one of the LEAST of the worries when you compare it to a few otheres..have your people take a look), we could cut some slack. While I'm still reluctant to call them "junk," I have GRAVE concerns just as I did with the HHP-8s. I stated they would NEVER go the distance or last as long as the meatballs. I'm really beginning to think the same things about these new units...and we didn't even really have a hot summer last year.
I'm not talking from a strictly propulsion standpoint. There are MANY more things that go along with an engine and as I previously indicated, it's nice to have a spanking new unit. If we had a spanking new infrastructure to go along with it, I'm sure they'd fit in fine. I've said it before and I'll say it again: The HHP-8s had their flaws but among the biggest was the fact the HHp-8s were smart. In fact, they were too smart for the pounding that the NEC gave them. The same will apply to these units.
The AEM-7s performed because they are dumb. They basically run because they don't know any better. They literally run until they die, catch on fire or someone bothers to turn them off. They are perfect for Amtrak's old NEC infrastructure. Even with yet another round of mods, these smarter units are not taking the pounding well and as AM previously stated, certain things that shouldn't be an issue at this stage in the game already are. If toaster wants to blame the personnel, I wouldn't argue the point. I would only say that they shouldn't have been able to cause some of the issues...if things were "up to snuff and built to last."
Again, I'm not throwing in the towel. There are many mods coming, particularly on the lower units. I still want to see how these things handle extreme heat, because last summer the few days that were extreme wrecked havoc. However, to say it's just "teething" issues and one or two units is highly inaccurate.
I was speaking to someone who wondered aloud: If this is how they are (mis)behaving now, what will happen when Amtrak starts REALLY running them into the ground? What will happen when they are routinely short turned? The AEM-7DCs weren't junk. They were abused and ill maintained and now the price is being paid. If Amtrak starts treated these units like the AEM-7s, the person I was speaking to summed it up nicely:
These units are doomed.