After World War II, the Deutsche Bundesbahn (DB) rapidly accelerated the dieselization of its rail network in order to replace the uneconomical steam locomotive service. Shaped by the standardization program of the 1950s, powerful standardized diesel locomotives with diesel-hydraulic power transmission were developed, which dominated service on both branch lines and main lines until the turn of the millennium.
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217 022 was performing shunting operations at Nuremberg Central Station on June 1, 1977. Photo: Klaus Ratzinger.
| Series (until or from 1968) | Numbers | built | Explanation |
|---|---|---|---|
| V 45 245 | 001-010 | 1956 | Light Shunting Locomotive |
| V 51 251 | 901-903 (750 mm) | 1964 | Narrow Gauge |
| V 52 252 | 901-902 (1000 mm) | 1964 | Narrow Gauge |
| V 60 260 | 001-019; 022-024; 027, 029-036; 046-049; 101-180; 201-347; 351-392; 400-433; 447-451; 501-618; 741-800; 842-896; 900-942 | 1956 | Light to medium shunting locomotive (standard type) |
| V 60 261 | 001-004; 042-045; 101-241; 424-426; 434-441; 443-446; 621-740; 801-840 | 1955 | V 60 with higher tractive load |
| V 65 265 | 001-015 | 1956 | Medium-sized line and shunting locomotive |
| V 80 280 | 001-010 | 1952 | First four-axle multi-purpose diesel locomotive (prototypes) |
| V 90 290 | 001-407; 999 | 1964 | Heavy shunting and transfer locomotive |
| V 90 291 | 001-100; 901-903 | 1965 | V 90 with higher tractive load |
| V 100.10 211 | 001-005; 007-365 | 1958-1963 | Light mainline and branch line locomotive |
| V 100.20 212 | 001-331; 342-381 | 1962-1965 | Light mainline and branch line locomotive |
| V 100.20 213 | 332-341 | 1965 | Steep-gradient locomotive |
| 214 / 714 | 214 033 / 212 033 etc. 714 001-015 | 1988-1996 | Conversion: 212 033, 046, 160, 235, 236, 244-246, 251, 257, 260, 269, 271, 277, 352 |
| V 160 216.0 | 001-010 pre-production series | 1960-1963 | Medium-duty universal mainline locomotive (“Lollo”) |
| V 160 216 | 011-224 Series | 1964 | Medium universal mainline locomotive |
| V 162 217 | 001-003 pre-production series 011-022 Series | 1965 1968 | Variant of the V 160 family with electric heating |
| V 164 218.0 | 001-012 pre-production series | 1968 | |
| V 164 218 | 101-499 Series | 1971-1979 | The Bundesbahn’s most widely built universal mainline locomotive. |
| V 169 219 | 001 | 1965 | Prototype with additional gas turbine |
| 215.0 | 001-010 pre-production series | 1968 | Variant of the V 160 family with a steam heating boiler |
| 215 /225 | 011-150 Series | 1969 | Variant of the V 160 family with a steam heating boiler |
| 210 / 218.9 | 001-008 | 1970 | Express train locomotive with auxiliary gas turbine drive |
| V 188 288 | 001-002 | 1939 Conversion 1952 | Conversion of a Wehrmacht diesel-electric locomotive into a freight locomotive |
| V 200.0 220 | 001-005 pre-production series 006-086 | 1953 1956 | The classic heavy express train locomotive (1st series) |
| V 200.1 221 | 101-150 | 1962 | Upgraded version of the V 200 with higher power output |
| V 300 230 | 001 | 1957 | Six-axle prototype locomotive from Krauss-Maffei |
| V 320 232 | 001 | 1962 | DB’s most powerful single diesel-hydraulic locomotive |
| DE 2500 202 | 001-004 | 1971 | Test vehicle |
| V 29 299 | 951-953 (1000 mm) | 1952 | Narrow gauge |
| V 11 329 / 399 | 501 502-503 | 1952 1957 | Narrow-gauge locomotives for island railways (1000 mm) |