EMD Dash 2

The EMD Dash 2 is a line of diesel-electric locomotives introduced by General Motors' Electro-Motive Division on January 1, 1972. Models took the designation of the earlier locomotive with -2 added, so the SD40 was replaced by the SD40-2. They kept the basic specifications of the older models in power and most other features but brought improvements to the internal systems, especially the electrical equipment and the trucks, to raise availability, efficiency and ease of maintenance. The main change was a modular electrical control cabinet that allowed maintenance by unit replacement and common parts, first tested on the DDA40X. Visible changes include damped trucks, six-axle trucks with all traction motors facing the centre (the HT-C), a lengthened frame and bolted battery box covers. Many older locomotives were rebuilt to Dash 2 standards by railroads and shops.