East Penn Rail Road (ESPN) GP18 Locomotive No. 1804 at the end of their short line in Pennsburg, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania.
Photo by the Montgomery County Planning Commission.
(Montgomery County Planning Commission (Pennsylvania), CC BY-SA 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons)
EMD GP18 DIESEL-ELECTRIC LOCOMOTIVE
The EMD GP18 is a 4-axle diesel-electric locomotive built by General Motors, Electro-Motive Division between December 1959 and November 1963. Power was provided by an EMD 567D1 16-cylinder engine which generated 1,800 horsepower (1.34 MW). The GP18 replaced the GP9 in EMD's catalog. 350 examples of this locomotive model were built for American railroads, 40 units were built for Mexican railroads, 12 were built for export to a Brazilian railroad, 2 were exported to Peru, and 1 was exported to Saudi Arabia.
Ferrocarriles Nacionales de México (NdeM) EMD GP18 7504 at San Luis Potosi, San Luis Potosi, Mexico, March 7, 1975. Photographer: James C Herold.
This unit was built in June, 1961, as part of a the first order for 20 units, NdeM 7500-7519. NdeM owned a total of 37 bought over the next year.
(Craig Garver, Public domain, https://www.flickr.com/photos/digitalrailartist/51755074936/in/photolist-2mGCcne-2mGHXwW-2mRqhEd-2mGGt5g-2mGHDiS-2jHwLrH)
Design and Production
The GP18 in many ways resembled its predecessors, the GP7 and GP9. It was designed nearly identically to the two previous models, but differed in having a metal grid over its radiator shutters, while the GP7 and GP9 instead incorporated a design described as looking like "chicken wire". Additionally, the GP18 had 50 more horsepower than the GP9, for a total of 1,800 horsepower.
GP18s could be customized by their buyers: railroads ordered GP18s with either high or low short hoods, with or without dynamic brakes, and in the case of Grand Trunk Western, with the optional addition of steam generators.
Sonora Baja California EMD GP18 2306 at Mexicali, Baja California, March 22, 1976. Photographer: Thomas Chenowith.
(Craig Garver, Public domain, https://www.flickr.com/photos/digitalrailartist/51656674150/)
Original buyers
| Railroad | Quantity | Road numbers | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aberdeen and Rockfish Railroad | 1 | 300 | |
| Baltimore and Ohio Railroad | 1 | 6599 | GP18M 1,750 horsepower (1,300 kW) |
| Boston and Maine Railroad | 6 | 1750–1755 | Mistakenly delivered as 1770–1775, but quickly renumbered to 1750-1755 |
| Central of Georgia Railway | 8 | 171–178 | To Southern Railway 171–178 |
| Chicago and North Western Railway | 6 | 1774–1779 | |
| Grand Trunk Western Railroad | 11 | 4700–4707, 4950–4952 | 4950-4952 equipped with steam generators |
| Illinois Central Railroad | 29 | 9400–9428 | |
| Lehigh Valley Railroad | 4 | 302–305 | To Conrail 7496–7499 |
| Louisville and Nashville Railroad | 5 | 460–464 | Renumbered 900–904, Then Seaboard System 1066–1070. |
| Missouri Pacific Railroad | 146 | 400–499, 534–550, 4801-4829 | 400–499 built with AAR Type B trucks |
| New York, Susquehanna and Western Railway | 3 | 1800, 1802, 1804 | Sold in 2010 to East Penn Railroad |
| New York, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad (“Nickel Plate Road”) | 10 | 700–709 | To Norfolk and Western Railway 2700–2709 |
| Norfolk and Western Railway | 48 | 915–962 | |
| Norfolk Southern Railway | 17 | 1–17 | To Southern Railway 180–196 |
| Northern Pacific Railway | 9 | 376–384 | To Burlington Northern Railroad 1990–1998 |
| Phelps Dodge Corporation (New Cornelia Mine) | 3 | 44–46 | |
| Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad | 24 | 1238–1239, 1256, 1333–1353 | 1238–1239, 1256 are 1,500 horsepower (1,100 kW) GP18M. |
| Seaboard Air Line Railroad | 10 | 400–409 | To Seaboard Coast Line Railroad 1056–1065 |
| Tennessee, Alabama and Georgia Railway | 1 | 801 | Renumbered 50 soon after delivery; to Southern Railway 179 |
| Texas and Pacific Railway | 5 | 1145–1149 | To Missouri Pacific Railroad 500–504 |
| Texas Mexican Railway | 2 | 854–855 | |
| Toledo, Peoria and Western Railway | 1 | 600 | To Vermont Railway 801 |
| National Railways of Mexico | 37 | 7500–7536 | 7520-7529 equipped with steam generators |
| Ministry of Communication and Transportation (Mexico) | 3 | 7123 - 5 to 7 | To Sonora-Baja California 2304–2306 |
| Araraquara Railway (Brazil) | 12 | 1006–1017 | 1,600 mm (5 ft 3 in) gauge |
| Saudi Government Railways | 1 | 1200 | GP18M 1,500 horsepower (1,100 kW) |
| Southern Peru Copper Corp. | 2 | 24-25 | |
| Total | 405 |
An EMD GP18 owned and operated by FEPASA (formerly Araraquara Railway).
(Ricardo Frontera, CC BY-SA 3.0 <http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/>, via Wikimedia Commons)
EMD GP18 Overview
Type and origin
Power type: Diesel-electric
Builder: General Motors, Electro-Motive Division (EMD)
Model: GP18
Build date: December 1959 – November 1963
Total produced: U.S.- 350 units, Mexico- 40 units, export- 15 units. 405 units total.
Specifications
Configuration:
• AAR B-B
Gauge: Most units: 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge; Brazilian units: 5 ft 3 in (1,600 mm)
Fuel capacity: 1,700 US gallons (6,400 L; 1,400 imp gal)
Prime mover: EMD 567D1
Engine type: V16 diesel engine
Aspiration: Roots blower
Cylinders: 16
Performance figures
Power output: 1,800 hp (1.34 MW)
Career
Locale: United States, Mexico, Brazil, Peru and Saudi Arabia
Sonora Baja California EMD GP18 2305 at Mexicali, Baja California, September 3, 1972. Photographer: Thomas Chenowith.
(Craig Garver, Public domain, https://www.flickr.com/photos/digitalrailartist/51656383299/)
