RTL Turboliner - Amtrak Ph III - 5 Car Set No 1 (DC,DCC & Sound)



In the early days of Amtrak, efforts were made to improve passenger services along key corridors. Following the success of the French-built RTG Turboliners in the mid-1970s in the Midwest, Amtrak turned to Rohr Industries in California to build modernized Turboliners for use along the Empire Corridor.

 Entering service starting in September 1976, these new RTL Turboliners quickly proved their value, bringing passengers back to the rails. Equipped with third-rail shoes, they operated on electric power through New York’s Grand Central Terminal (and later Penn Station), switching to gas-turbine power once out of New York City. Painted in Amtrak’s stunning red, white and blue Phase III paint scheme, they operated on most Empire Corridor services, as well as regular appearances on the Adirondack to and from Montreal in the early years. Occasional equipment needs even put the Turbos on other rare adventures outside their normal call of duty, including the Niagara Rainbow to Detroit via Southwestern Ontario, and the Maple Leaf to Toronto via Niagara Falls.

Further redevelopments and improvements of the fleet into the RTL-IIIs was never fully realized, and all were retired from active service in 2004. Conventional equipment has since been utilized on the Empire Corridor services in place of the once mighty Turboliners.

The Rapido Trains N scale Rohr Turboliner features:

• Accurately designed using original blueprints and field measurements
• Tinted windows, interior details and flicker-free interior lighting
• Separate factory installed grab irons
• Highly-detailed trucks including third-rail shoes
• Working headlights, marker lights and cab-mounted strobe lights
• Both Power Cars come with smooth, reliable drive systems for optimal performance
• DCC models feature ESU sound decoders in each power car with accurate sounds sourced and remastered from original videos
• All wheel electrical pickup. Yes, we mean every ... single ... wheel!