Amtrak F40PH ‘California Zephyr’ Super-Pack 3.0

This pack is a complete rework of the Amtrak F40PH locomotive and Superliner cars from the standalone California Zephyr F40PH and the Soldier Summit route available here:

Amtrak F40PH ‘California Zephyr’ Loco Add-On:
https://store.steampowered.com/app/208296/Train_Simulator_Amtrak_F40PH_California_Zephyr_Loco_AddOn/

Soldier Summit Route Add-On:
https://store.steampowered.com/app/277775/Train_Simulator_Soldier_Summit_Route_AddOn/

Version 3.0 Change(s):

• Texture upgrades to the Superliner cars.

F40PH Locomotive (Phase III):

• Black roof and underbody (Untouched).
• Platinum Mist body.
• Three stripes: Amtrak Red (Top), white (Center), Amtrak Heritage Blue (Bottom).
  

Superliner Cars and Heritage Baggage Car (Phase II):

• Black underbody (Untouched).
• Stainless steel body
• Two stripes: Amtrak Red (Top) and Amtrak Heritage Blue (Bottom)
• White pin stripes above the Amtrak Red stripe, below the Amtrak Heritage Blue stripe and between the stripes.
  

Superliner Cars and Heritage Baggage Car (Phase III):

• Black underbody (Untouched).
• Stainless steel body
• Three stripes: Amtrak Red (Top), white (Center), Amtrak Heritage Blue (Bottom)
  

Engine Performance:
This pack simulates the F40PH-2, which has a power output of 3,200 hp and an HEP capacity of 800 kW.

HEP Implementation:
Train Simulator Classic does not implement HEP capability on diesel locomotives. Coach power demand depends on coach type, season, time of day, and daily weather conditions. For instance, a train consisting of Superliner cars, including dining and sightseer lounge cars, traveling through the southern US in the middle of summer and during the dinner shift, will have a significantly greater HEP demand than a train traveling through the Midwest in autumn, but consisting of only Amfleet cars. So, implementing an accurate/realistic HEP mode for a locomotive is particularly challenging.

Regarding the F40PH locomotive, it has the HEP alternator driven by the diesel engine (prime mover). To provide a steady 480 volts of AC power at 60 Hz, the prime mover needs to run at a constant 893 RPM (max speed), regardless of the throttle position. The more power the coaches demand from the HEP alternator, the less power is available for traction. So, to simulate the decrease in performance according to HEP demand, I provided multiple versions of the HEP engine—with and without driver (ND)—identified by the HEP demand in kW: 290 kW, 331 kW, 461 kW, 500 kW, 631 kW and 800 kW. To include a HEP engine, you must either edit or create a consist.

Please, bear in mind I could not find any power consumption data for the different Amtrak car types. So, I used the power demand estimates for different types of passenger cars found in this webpage: https://www.nwrail.com/HEP_config.html.

Car Type Power Consumption:

• Amfleet I Business Class Car: 40 kW
• Amfleet I & II Coach Class Car: 40 kW
• Amfleet I & II Cafe Car: 50 kW
• Heritage Diner Car 100 kW
• Viewliner Sleeper Car: 50 kW
• Heritage Baggage Car: 1 kW
• Superliner Transition Sleeper Car: 50 kW
• Superliner Sleeper Car: 50 kW
• Superliner Dining Car: 130 kW
• Superliner Sightseer Lounge Car: 150 kW
• Superliner Coach Class Car: 50 kW
• Superliner Coach Baggage Car: 50 kW

I based the different HEP demands on what I considered “typical” Amtrak consists:

Medium-Short Haul Consist (Amtrak’s Northeast Regional or Palmetto trains):

• x 5 Amfleet I Coach Class Cars: 200 kW
• x 1 Amfleet I Cafe Car: 50 kW
• x 1 Amfleet I Business Class Car: 40 kW
  Total HEP Demand: 290 kW

Eastern Long Haul Consist (Amtrak’s Silver Star or Crescent trains):

• x 4 Amfleet II Coach Class Cars: 160 kW
• x 1 Amfleet II Cafe Car: 50 kW
• x 1 Heritage Diner Car: 100 kW
• x 3 Viewliner Sleeper Cars: 150 kW
• x 1 Heritage Baggage Car: 1 kW
  Total HEP Demand: 461 kW

Western Long Haul Consist (Amtrak’s California Zephyr or Empire Builder trains):

• x 1 Heritage Bagge Car: 1 kW
• x 1 Superliner Transition Sleeper Car: 50 kW
• x 2 Superliner Sleeper Cars: 100 kW
• x 1 Superliner Dining Car: 130 kW
• x 1 Superliner Sightseer Lounge Car: 150 kW
• x 3 Superliner Coach Class Cars: 150 kW
• x 1 Superliner Coach Baggage Car: 50 kW
  Total HEP Demand: 631 kW

Empire Builder (Seattle Section):

• x 1 Heritage Baggage Car: 1 kW
• x 1 Superliner Transition Sleeper Car: 50 kW
• x 1 Superliner Sleeper Car: 50 kW
• x 1 Superliner Dining Car: 130 kW
• x 2 Superliner Coach Class Cars: 100 kW
  Total HEP Demand: 331 kW

NOTE: If you try to tinker with the power settings in the engine’s simulation file, please bear in mind that according to the “Train Simulator Developer Documentation” (Available here: https://www.christrains.com/tscdevdocs/reference-manual/blueprint-editor/diesel-simulation-blueprints/diesel-electric-subsystem.html#TOC-Max-Power-kW-0-20000-1kW-1.341HP-), engine power values are expressed in kW and tractive effort in kN.

Tags: amtrak california-zephyr emd f40ph f40ph-2 passenger-train superliner usa