Class 175s and 180s planned for 'N' and 'OO'

Revolution Trains is offering the Class 175 ‘Coradia’ and Class 180 ‘Adelante’ units in N gauge and 00 gauge as its next multiple unit models. The manufacturer has been working on the Class 175 and 180 for some time, with the assistance of Alstom, Grand Central and Transport for Wales. CAD work on the N gauge version is almost complete, and the design will be upscaled to OO gauge in due course.

N gauge models are expected to precede the OO gauge versions by a few months and pre-orders at a lower price are expected to open in the next few weeks.

The Revolution Trains models will feature a specification including directional lighting, couplers that can transfer power and DCC control signals between cars, smooth coreless motor with pin-point axles and full interiors with saloon lighting as standard.

Liveries have not been finalised yet, as the order book has not opened, however they are likely to include for the Class 175 original First North Western, Arriva and Transport for Wales and for the Class 180 First Great Western, First Hull trains ‘dynamic lines’, Grand Central and East Midlands Railway.

The 100mph Class 175s were built by Alstom in Birmingham between 1999 and 2001 and initially entered service with First North Western. The fleet comprises 11 two-car sets and 16 three-car sets, and after spells with Wales and Borders and Arriva all are now in service with Transport for Wales, operating across Wales and into the Midlands and North West England.

The faster 125mph Class 180 5-car trains are designed for higher speeds and while they share many family similarities with the Coradia units they feature very differently styled aerodynamic cab ends. They were constructed for First Great Western expresses from London to South Wales and the West Country, however they were not a success and were transferred to routes to Oxford and Birmingham.

Subsequently they were transferred to Grand Central, to operate between London, Bradford and Sunderland and Hull Trains. Most recently East Midlands Railway has introduced them between London St Pancras, Nottingham, Derby, Sheffield and Corby.

“The Coradia and Adelante units are full of character, eye-catching and have been used widely in England and Wales,” says Revolution Trains’ Mike Hale. “We think they are exactly the kind of interesting, but niche, model that our customers will like.”

“Both these trains are interesting in different ways,” adds Revolution’s Ben Ando. “The 175 has been a stalwart in the English West Midlands, North West or Wales since the late 1990s whereas the 180 – despite its inauspicious start – has proved to be a successful and stylish train in Grand Central’s unmistakeable black and orange colours – and has seen operation on three of our busiest lines.”

“For lots of people modelling the last twenty years these units are the ‘missing link,” explains Ben. “The 175 opens up the chance to model many very appealing locations in Wales and the Marches, while the Class 180 goes every well with either First HSTs for those modelling the Great Western mainline, or the latest LNER ‘Azumas’ on the East Coast. And the 180s create new scope for modelling the present day Midland mainline too.”

For further details and information, visit the Revolution Trains website.