It is with regret railway
engineering is often outsourced to distant enterprises who often prefer an
assembly function in this country. So it is with regret to record the passing of Paxmans diesels of Colchester,
a pioneer of diesel traction. This company was well known as manufacturer of engines for Deltic
locomotives and HST Power Cars.
Paxmans long association with railways, is fully explored in the following pages.
It would be impossible to
summarise the range of information available on this web site, what is worth
recording that the heritage and successes of a local engineering firm is
recorded and appreciated. This in a small way is something that can be
developed at the museum as a nameplate has been donated by the former owners of
a HST Powercar.
Jack Plumb was able to secure from his employers the nameplate, receive by Jaki on behalf of the curatorial department in future a display is to be developed to mark the role of local industry in the story of railways. Paxman developed powerful high speed diesels, deployed in Deltic locomotives on East Coast line duties, following that Valenta engines originally the power behind the success of HST trains which were more widely adopted across the country.
Paxman’s last diesel engine development was the VP185 in 1987. During the late 1990s
twenty-five HST power cars were re-engined with Paxman 12VP185L engines in
order to improve fuel consumption and reduce emissions.
HST’s have now been re-engined with MTU units and taken up
secondary duties, principally as reduced length trains on Great western and
Scotrail.
In preservation Power cars have been donated by Angel
Trains 43018 to Crewe Heritage Centre, Porterbrook
donated 43048 and 43089 to the 125 Group. Both moved to the group when their
lease ended with East Midlands Railway. Today there are no production power
cars fitted with a Paxman Valenta engine, although the 125 Group have
reinstalled a Paxman Valenta in the surviving prototype power car, 41001
(formerly 43000).
