On January 1, 2015, stricter Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Tier 4 rules went into effect for new production diesel locomotives, requiring a 70% reduction in nitrogen oxide and particulate matter emissions. Of the two U.S. makers of mainline freight engines, General Electric and EMD, only GE was ready with a new Tier 4 diesel.
More than two years earlier, in August 2012, GE had outshopped No. 2015, the first demonstrator of its “Ecomagination” technology for meeting Tier 4 standards. What GE wanted to avoid was the “after-treatment” solution used since 2010 in heavy truck engines: carrying a tankfull of a chemical called urea that reacts with exhaust gas to neutralize nitrogen oxide. Instead GE developed an ingenious system that recirculates hot exhaust gas back into the engine; the net result is that switching to a new GE diesel is the equivalent of removing 12,000 cars from our nation’s highways.
The top-of-the-line RailKing Imperial model of this modern freight mover features a full range of locomotive sounds recorded from an actual ES44AC. Outfitted with two powerful flywheel-equipped motors, all-metal wheels and gears, and our revolutionary Proto-Speed Control, our ES44AC will haul long freights at any speed from a crawl to full throttle. Remotely activated front and rear Proto-Couplers allow you to pick up and drop off freight wherever you like. Additional Imperial features on the ES44AC include operating diesel exhaust smoke, flashing LED ditch lights, and operating LED Charging Lights.