Class 151 - Forerunner to the Turbostar/Electrostar trains?

[RobShipway]

I have been looking at photos such as http://www.traintesting.com/images/151mick2.jpg of the Class 151 prototype trains from Metro Cammell, it does seem to me that the Class 151 was certainly the forerunner of the Class 165/166/170 and also has a cab similar to Class 357 trains?

 

[rail-britain]

Evolution really
The Class 151 resulted in the Class 156
The main issue with the Class 151 was the ride quality, hence the contract was awarded it was agreed they would use a bogie provided by BREL, rather than their own

 

[starrymarkb]

Plus it's more the forerunner of the 175/180.

The [xxx]stars are based on the NSE Networker produced by ABB (Though Met-Cam did build some of the electric models)

 

[jopsuk]

As said, the 151 has nothing to do with the Electro and Turbostar. The class 168 is the "missing link" between the NSE-specified Networkers. The 465/466 and 165/166 were all designed around the same time, the electric versions being built by Met-Cam and BREL (which became ABB partway through), and the diesels by BREL/ABB. There's also the ABB built 365s. Had NSE had their way, all the slam door stock in the south would have been replaced with Networkers.

The 168s were a further development, ordered post-privitastion (the end of the thousand day order drought) and are a mix of units that look like Networkers and units that look like Turbostars. Mechanically, they're more like 170s than 165/166s.

 

[RPM]

168s are just 170s with different electrics. 168/0s (apart from a few minor differences) are a 170 with a different cab. The fact thay have a different cab seems to make enthusiasts think they are an entirely different species to to other Turbostars for some reason.

 

[O L Leigh]

The Class 151 resulted in the Class 156

Nope. The Cl156 was a new design from the ground up using the same running gear and drivetrain as the BREL Cl150s. There are almost no common features between the Cl151 and the Cl156.

The main issue with the Class 151 was the ride quality, hence the contract was awarded it was agreed they would use a bogie provided by BREL, rather than their own

Again, nope.

The contract for the 20m Sprinter was awarded to BREL for the Cl150 even before all the prototypes had been delivered let alone evaluated, and primarily for political reasons. There were issues with ride quality, but that was due to the "hotshift" auto-box transmission that the Cl151s used never changing smoothly and transmitting shocks to the bodyshells. Try as they might BR and Met-Camm were never able to solve the problem, although it seemed to behave itself when fitted under one of the Cl154 prototype cars for a time.

The real problem was that the Cl151s were wildly non-standard which lead to them being withdrawn from service and stored. There was a suggestion of fitting them with bogies similar to those under the Cl150 so that they could be returned to traffic, but this was found to be impractical.

O L Leigh

 

[Simon Poole]

The Class 151, it's looks like what happens if you get a Class 143 Pacer and a Class 150 Sprinter