The History of First Generation DMUs
The Railcar website provides information on the British Railways first generation DMUs (a.k.a. diesel multiple units / railcars) introduced in the 1950s.
The content of this website
The six key sections of the website are:
- Types - looks at each type of DMU in detail
- Topics - features articles on different aspects of the vehicles and personal recollections
- Technology - describes the technical details of how they work
- Data - various lists of numerical details
- Images - galleries featuring DMUs
- In Print - details the books and other printed materials made available over the years that have relevance
Details of railcars in preservation can be found on The Railcar Association website.
Date on DMUs
Vehicle / Set Data
To view details of a particular vehicle or set enter the number below:
DMU Images Wanted!
Do you have photos of First Generation DMUs? The more images we have the better we can tell the DMU story and make it more useful to visitors. Images can be loaded directly onto the site - just register as a user and upload! Alternatively if you have images on flickr or another website I can do the uploads for you - just let me know.
Scope
This website contains details about the First Generation DMUs. This includes the 4-wheel diesel railbuses, ACV / BUT railcars, the Battery Multiple Unit (BMU) and Blue Pullmans. It covers the period from their introduction to British Railways in the 1950s till their withdrawal and disposal from main-line use, but NOT preservation.
Because of the vast amount of data that this covers and the amount of information I have still to process I cannot include the DEMUs introduced on the Southern Region in the same era, nor Second Generation or later types.
Updates
August 1st
Added to the headcode pages are three more summaries of those used on the Eastern Region from September 1962. Also a Leeds Neville Hill destination blind from circa mid-1960s.
July 25th
Some new operation/timetable pages have been started: Peterborough - Spalding; Nottingham - Sheffield; Darlington / Barnard Castle - Middleton-in-Teesdale; Fife Coast; and Brixham - Churston.
July 18th
New in the document archive are the Job Desciptions from Issue 3 of Standard Maintenance Instructions, the 1970s version of maintenance instructions.
July 11th
Added to the headcode pages are some of those used on the Eastern Region.
July 4th
Some new operation/timetable pages have been started: Firsby - Skegness; Crewe - Chester; Middlesbrough - Guisborough; Edinburgh - Bathgate; and Maerdy - Porth.
June 27th
New in the document archive are the Examination Schedules from Issue 3 of Standard Maintenance Instructions, the 1970s version of maintenance instructions.
June 6th
Added to the headcode pages are five more summaries of those used on the London Midland Region from the Western, Central, and North Western Lines.
Latest Images:
Class 101 DMU set 101343 (presumably 51526 + 59686 + 51795) departs from Fairlie station circa July 1984. John Horne.
Class 104 DMSL M53565 at the rear of two Class 107 cars (presumably 59800 + 51992) arriving into Glasgow Central circa July 1984. John Horne.
107 444 stopped alongside Cambus Junction signal box during the "Tay-Forth Venturer" railtour on 16 June 1984. John Horne.
107 444 (52031 + 59804 + 52005) at the Stirling stop of the "Tay-Forth Venturer" railtour on 16 June 1984. John Horne.
107 444 (52005 + 59804 + 52031) in Stirling station during a stop of the "Tay-Forth Venturer" railtour on 16 June 1984. John Horne.
On This Day:
M56225 leads a (blue square) Derby Lightweight twin DMU leaving Sandy station with the 10.12am Cambridge - Bletchley service on 7 August 1961. Note how the cab roof dome is much darker than the roof. Michael Mensing.
Class 108 DMU set B398 (presumably 51416 + 53632) in Maiden Newton with a Westbury - Weymouth service on 7 August 1990. Stuart Mackay Collection.
A derailed Gloucester single car at Maiden Newton on 7 August 1968, image one of three. Bristol only had one of these vehicles allocated on this date, so this is thought to be W55001. Stuart Mackay Collection.
55991 in the north bay at Cambridge, 7/8/89, alongside 54347. Mike Cooper.
Cars M50514 + M59166 + M50458 / M50511 + M59144 + M50459 call at Llandudno Junction with the 09:59 Stockport - Llandudno, 7th August 1982. Graeme Phillips Collection.