It looks ok with hatch closed but I prefer the 802 it looks stunning especially with TransPennine’s livery.
Agreed the 80xs are the best looking trains on our network today though (and I'll admit bias is involved) personally you can't beat the LNER Azuma livery as it really does suit them. I would say Azuma first, then GWR and then TPE.
That's the cab/HEP-car end, the other end is a normal locomotive (Siemens Charger in the case of the Amtrak Cascades corridor)
Italians do it Better? Pininfarina is well known in the world for unique designs in furniture, cars, boats and motorhomes. Seriously, I think Pinin hates the trains who have to draw for job. This is the Alpha Family, a modular EMU built in Campania by the Indian firm Titagarh. The Alpha is the top product in Titagarh catalogue since 2016. Today the only operator is still the Campanian Transit Autorithy (EAV).
Another Pininfarina Design: the TAF Platform, built in 2000s and now almost scrapped everywhere in Italy. In Morocco some TAF sets still run IC services, like the IC2 Twindexx Vario in Germany (160 km/h and superior confort, despite the Italian version that was used only in suburban service). I know your thinking: yes, it's like a giant dildo mounted on wheels.
If you are tourists in Italy and you travel by train around Rome, Florence, or Venice, it's likely you'll find at your platform this thing, always drawn by Pininfarina: the Rock EMU! Inside is even worse than the cabin of a Ryanair's 737. I hate this train with every cell of my body, not only for the shitty design. This train has replaced since 2019 all the services that had a loco plus 6-8 carriages (this set has only 4 or 5 units), so in rush hours it's impossible to ride sit down or even get aboard the train, forcing me and many others to wait for the next service. Fortunately in Emilia-Romagna Administration they privately bought several complementary Stadler Filrts, that are longer and more spacious than the Trenitalia's Coradias, here nicknamed "Pop".
The E5 looks amazing from the side, just not so much end on The Shinkansen noses are for noise reduction, there are quite strict limits on the noise the trains can make as the high speed lines often run through urban areas. The longer noses allow higher speed while staying within the noise limits (as do a lot of the aerodynamic fairings and wings on newer shinkansen models) - JR East/Hokkaido sets run faster than JR Central/West hence the longer nose on Eastern sets. Eastern sets also run in multiple so need to include an autocoupler hatch in the nose tip
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but for my money the ugliest train in the UK was the Class 140, the prototype that led to the Pacer.
Class 73s and 141s - wash your mouths out lol I can agree with the 755s and 777s though! I don’t think the livery on the 777 helps. But looking at some of these there is some bigger competition out there I wasn’t aware of!
Unfortunately, we're going to be stuck with this monstrosity for 30 years, at least. Is this the old Talgo that was coupled-up to an F unit? Because those were actually ok looking when coupled up. The newer ones though...
For the first one you mean the Platypus looking train which is also going to be stuck in the United States and France the latter has the ability to run 15kv 16.7hz AC Germany Austria Switzerland.
Sure, sure .....form follows function. And I know a thing or two about aerodynamics. But does it need to be ugly? Is it a nipponic tradition? (Don´t take that bait, just kidding in a not too serious thread )
The funny thing is, despite the ugliness of some of these they will be missed when taken out of service (if they haven't been already). Some really ugly designs, though (I'll be nice and refer to them as "unique").
That is called the Haruka with services to Osaka and Kyoto 101 km (63mi) away from Kansai Airport. It also has special colours.
When moving maybe, I think they have a nice-ish outside appeal (the UK has had uglier trains to hand)
Wow Something that's actually worse than the Pacer I thought that I would never find anything. Do's it squeal as well like a Pacer
Hi sorry about that I posted the quote in the wrong placecI I will delete it I am still getting used to this system
Cheers mate, it's just a joke ! My local line here used a lot of ALCo. built high-hood diesels when I was like 10. So I love them... I can understand why people don't like high-hoods due to their boxy design & poor visibility. But they just felt dominant & strong to the 10-year-old me
Lol. Nah I'm with you, I personally reckon high hoods are more attractive that the low hoods! There's a fine line between function & form. But an ugly one for me has to be the br class 642. I personally can't stand the windows in two sizes, which you tend to find on euro centric units, it totally messes with the flow and makes them look shorter & awkwardly clunky, this and also the trim heavy nose impeding potential livery integration. On top of that the nose is a cluttered mess, the large glass surface like an extension of the window almost seems like it's trying to hide the arrangement by distorting it too, plus the PIS under the window is never a good look (one reason why the SC-44 is quite ugly). In contrast, whilst the Desiro HC has the two tiered passenger windows, it's not too bad since they're the same vertical height. Plus the face is good looking to make up for that and the trim isn't excessive.
The 93's Autocoupler looks very Cthulu like... I did try and see if I could spot it in Portbury this weekend, but it wasn't visible from M5 Bridge
I recently learned of the DL-109, and I must admit, I'm not too fond of it! (It's tolerable on other railroads, but I think it looks quite bad on the ATSF)
I can't believe no one mentioned the appropriately nicknamed "Whale" that is the Alstom Coradia A TER:
