DRG Class E 18
| DRG Class E 18 DB Class 118, DR Class 218 ÖBB 1018/1118 |
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118 054 in Bw Würzburg, 1983
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| Number(s) | DRG E 18 01–44, E 18 045-053, E 18 201-208 DB E 18 054–055 |
| Quantity | 63 |
| Manufacturer | AEG, Krupp, Lokomotivfabrik Floridsdorf |
| Year(s) of manufacture | 1935−1939 (61 locomotives) 1954−1955 (2 locomotives) |
| Retired | 1984 (DB)/1991 (DR) |
| Axle arrangement | 1'Do'1' |
| Track gauge | 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) |
| Length over buffers | 16,920 mm (55 ft 6 in) |
| Service weight | 108.5 t (106.8 long tons; 119.6 short tons) |
| Axle load | 18.1 t (17.8 long tons; 20.0 short tons) |
| Top speed | 150 km/h (93 mph) |
| Power output (one hour) | 3,040 kW (4,080 hp) |
| Power output (continuous) | 2,840 kW (3,810 hp) |
| Starting tractive effort | 206 kN (46,000 lbf) |
| Power index | 28.0 kW/t |
| Electric system | 15 kV 16 2/3 Hz Catenary |
| Collection method | Pantograph |
| No. of traction motors | 4 |
| Transmission | Helical spring gear |
| Running step switch | Camshaft controller with secondary transformer and precision regulator |
| Brakes | HikssbrmZ Compressed air brake; both sides of driving and carrying wheels |
| Train protection | Sifa/Indusi |
| Train heating | Electric |
The Deutsche Reichsbahn-Gesellschaft (DRG) Class E 18 is a class of electric locomotives built in Germany and Austria between 1935 and 1955. With exception of Class E 19 it was Deutsche Reichsbahn's fastest electric locomotive. After 1945 most of the surviving locomotives were operated by Deutsche Bundesbahn (DB), although a few passed to Deutsche Reichsbahn (DR) and Österreichische Bundesbahnen (ÖBB).
In addition to the 55 locomotives built in Germany, a further 8 locomotives of a modified design were built in Austria in 1939 as Class E 18.2 (later ÖBB class 1018).
Electric traction passenger services in Germany dates back to the year 1881, when near Berlin the first public line was taken into service in Berlin. Despite successful test runs with three-phase current electric railcars up to a top speed of 210 km/h (130 mph) in 1903, the German state railways decided to use single-phase alternating current because the overhead line of three-phase current was very complicated. The first mainline electric locomotives were all equipped with large, slow-going single electric motors.
Obviously the large single engines and the resulting power transmission by connecting rods made for poor operation characteristics at high speed. Nevertheless, it was not before 1913 that first electric main line locomotives with nose-suspended, fast-going single motors were commissioned. This development was further delayed by World War I. The decisive breakthrough was finally made in the 1920s, as large numbers of electric trainsets were developed for the electrification of the Berlin Stadtbahn in 1928. Accordingly, also in 1928 the first Class E 17 electric main line express locomotive entered service.
Class E 17 was a huge success, with a total of 38 units produced. The smaller Class E 04 was derived for lighter service in the less mountainous middle German regions. However, during the mid-1930s DRG decided to speed up its express train services over the 120 km/h (75 mph) that Class E 17 was admitted for. The newly developed Class E 18's basic layout was accordingly based on Class E 17. The electric design was based on the newer Class E 04. With respect to the higher speeds new class E 18's shape was streamlined. The Class E 18 was capable of operating a 935-tonne (920-long-ton; 1,031-short-ton) train at 140 km/h (87 mph) on level track, and up to 360 tonnes (350 long tons; 400 short tons) at 75 km/h (47 mph) on a 2% gradient. Another innovation was that the Class E 18 was the first electric locomotive with an engineer's seat. Earlier models were operated standing.
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