The DB Class 218 (before 1968 the DB Class V 164) are a class of 4 axle, diesel hydraulic locomotives acquired by the Deutsche Bundesbahn for use on main and secondary lines for both passenger and freight trains.
The class represents the final major revision of the DB V 160 family of locomotives; having the preferred features of the antecedent locomotives, including a hydrodynamic brake, and a single engine providing electrical train heating via a generator as well as tractive power. The class were also the most numerous of the family, providing the backbone of the Deutsche Bundesbahn's main-line diesel locomotive traction from the 1970s up to the reunification of Germany.
Despite being displaced from many workings by DMUs, electrification, and inherited DR Class 130s, as of 2009 a significant number of the class still remain active throughout Germany.
Read more about DB Class 218: Background, History and Design, Operations
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