City Rail V Set - History - First Batch (DCF, DDC, DTF & DTC)

First Batch (DCF, DDC, DTF & DTC)

In 1968 the New South Wales Government Railways placed an order for the first batch 16 cars, with Commonwealth Engineering. Described at the time as the 'most luxurious commuter stock in the world', they set new benchmarks for passenger comfort in Sydney. The cars made a first run from Sydney to Gosford on 10 June 1970, targeted as F111. This 4-car train was the first set to operate in revenue traffic from 22 June 1970, and all 16 cars were in operation by September of the same year.

These cars had many similar features to the later-built cars, including the one-piece moulded fibreglass front in royal blue & grey livery, semi-automatic doors, electronically controlled brakes and double-glazed windows. They did not have ditchlights (as they were considered unnecessary at the time), and had a different style of headlights.

There were:

8 Motor Cars - DCF 8001–8008 - Economy Class

4 Driving Trailer Cars - DDC 9001–9004 - 1st Class upper deck, Economy Class other seats

4 Trailer Cars - DTF 9011-9012 - Economy Class; DTC 9021–9022 - 1st Class upper deck, Economy Class other seats

The configuration of these cars was unsuccessful. The cars were fitted with AEI equipment, and the electrical equipment was split between the motor and trailer car. The cables were not able to provide the power needed to operate the train as proposed. This resulted in many failures of the train to operate and also failures in the air-conditioning system.

One class travel was introduced in September 1974, so the seating was all "economy class". This led to the refurbishment of the DDIU sets with the original luggage racks above the seating in the single deck section being removed. During this time the sets were targeted as U sets, the plates used on the then current single deck interurbans.

With the arrival of further V sets in the late 1970s and early 1980s, an excess of motor cars resulted and the decision was made to convert the 1970 cars to trailers and make them compatible with the later cars, thereby solving the reliability problems. The cars were rewired at Elcar Workshops, and the driver's compartment was removed and replaced by passenger toilets and luggage space.

The cars were subsequently renumbered:

DCF 8001–8008 > DMT 9201–9207 (7 cars remained after writing off DCF 8004)

DDC 9001–9004 > DDT 9208–9211

DTF 9011–9012 & DTC 9021–9022 > DFT 9212–9215

In 2002 these sets were decommissioned and sold for scrap metal due to rust in the steel frames.