GE AC6000CW - History

History

The AC6000CW was designed at the height of a horsepower race between the two major locomotive manufacturers, Electro-Motive Diesel of London, Ontario and GE Transportation Systems of Erie, Pennsylvania in the early to mid 1990s. The goal was 6,000 horsepower (4,500 kW).

GE partnered with Deutz-MWM of Germany in 1994 to design and construct the 7HDL engine for the locomotives. The first locomotive constructed was the "Green Machine" GE 6000, the nickname due to the green paint scheme. The first production models were also built in 1995: CSX Transportation 600-602, and Union Pacific Railroad 7000-7009. After testing was completed by GE, they were released to their respective owners in late 1996.

The locomotives started to suffer from various mechanical problems early on, with the most severe being the engine itself. There were major vibration problems, which were caused by the engine block walls being too thin. This in turn caused problems with the twin turbochargers. These problems caused GE to push back full production of the new model until 1998.

GE built 106 AC6000CWs for Union Pacific with the older, proven 7FDL engine, rated for 4,390 hp (3,270 kW). These units were originally supposed to be converted to the 6,250 hp (4,660 kW) 7HDL engine after the problems were worked out with the engine, but this never occurred. GE considers these units as AC6000CW "Convertibles," while UP classifies them as CW44/60ACs or AC4460CWs.

The AC6000CW ended production in 2001, although Union Pacific's 75xx series remains in daily use as of 2010, mostly on rock and gravel trains in Texas. Union Pacific designates these units as C60AC, CSX as CW60AC.