In 1988 Toronto-area commuter operator GO transit commissioned EMD to design a new commuter locomotive to replace the aging F40PH - which had been North America's standard passenger engine for more than a decade. The new F59PH design incorporated a 3000 horsepower prime mover and a separate head end power (HEP) motor/generator set for car lighting, heat, and air conditioning. The new engine used 12 cylinders instead of 16 to produce the same horsepower as the seventies-era F40PH, and with lower emissions. On the exterior, however, the F59new locomotive [didn't look like a new passenger engine; it ] had the boxy, muscular look of a freight hauler.

The Canadian-born design really came into its own on the West Coast of the United States. In 1994 the California Department of Transportation placed an order for nine F59's for "Amtrak California" service and specified a new look that, while officially designated the F59PHI, became known as the California F59: rounded nose, side skirts covering the fuel tank, and a streamlined carbody to blend with high, bilevel passenger cars. Other railroads apparently liked the new look and the engine's performance, and the F59PHI became a common sight on the West Coast. Commuter operators include Metrolink in Los Angeles, Translink in Vancouver, B.C., and Seattle's Sound Transit "Sounder" service. On the other side of the continent, F59PHI's can be found on Montreal commuter runs and Amtrak service out of Raleigh, North Carolina.

Replicate the services that are reviving commuter rail travel in many parts of the United States with MTH's fully-detailed F59PHI and matching passenger consists.

Did you know:

The addition of a separate motor/generator for head end power in the F59 eliminated an annoyance with the older F40PH, which had only a single motor: the prime mover in the F40 had to run at full throttle all the time, even when a train was stopped, in order to provide light and climate control to the passenger coaches. In fact a small number of F40's were built with a longer carbody to accommodate a separate HEP diesel motor.

Features:

• Intricately Detailed, Durable ABS Body
• Die-Cast Truck Sides, Pilots and Fuel Tank
• Metal Chassis
• Metal Handrails and Horn
• Moveable Roof Fans
• Metal Body Side Grilles
• Detachable Snow Plow
• (2) Handpainted Engineer Cab Figures
• Authentic Paint Scheme
• Metal Wheels, Axles and Gears
• (2) Remote-Controlled Proto-Couplers
• O Scale Kadee-Compatible Coupler Mounting Pads
• Prototypical Rule 17 Lighting
• Directionally Controlled Constant Voltage LED Headlight
• Lighted LED Cab Interior Light
• Illuminated LED Number Boards
• Lighted LED Marker Lights
• (2) Precision Flywheel-Equipped Motors
• Operating ProtoSmoke Diesel Exhaust
• Onboard DCC/DCS Decoder
• Locomotive Speed Control In Scale MPH Increments
• Proto-Scale 3-2 3-Rail/2-Rail Conversion Capable
• 1:48 Scale Proportions
• Proto-Sound 3.0 With The Digital Command System Featuring Passenger Station Proto-Effects
• Unit Measures: 15" x 2 5/8" x 3 7/8"
• Operates On O-31 Curves 

Diesel DCC Features

• F0 Head/Tail light
• F1 Bell
• F2 Horn
• F3 Start-up/Shut-down
• F4 PFA
• F5 Lights (except head/tail)
• F6 Master Volume
• F7 Front Coupler
• F8 Rear Coupler
• F9 Forward Signal
• F10 Reverse Signal
• F11 Grade Crossing
• F12 Smoke On/Off
• F13 Smoke Volume
• F14 Idle Sequence 3
• F15 Idle Sequence 2
• F16 Idle Sequence 1
• F17 Extended Start-up
• F18 Extended Shut-down
• F19 Rev Up
• F20 Rev Down
• F21 One Shot Doppler
• F22 Coupler Slack
• F23 Coupler Close
• F24 Single Horn Blast
• F25 Engine Sounds
• F26 Brake Sounds
• F27 Cab Chatter
• F28 Feature Reset