The final two HST power cars to be refurbished and fitted with MTU400 engines, Nos. 43002 and 43003, were handed over to First Great Western by Brush Traction, which carried out the re-engining, in a ceremony at Loughborough on February 27. Attended by Brush representatives, with guests from First Group, MTU, Angel Trains and Porterbrook Leasing, Brush m.d. John Bidewell said the project to re-engineer 117 power cars for FGW had been completed on time and on budget. First currently operates a fleet of 53 HSTs, and a 54th set will arrive from National Express East Coast (NXEC) in December. The project has given the 30-year-old power cars a new lease of life and such has been the success with reduced fuel consumption, lower noise and fewer emissions that GNER (now NXEC) and Crosscountry Trains have opted to replace their existing Valenta or VP185 engines with MTU4000s.
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