EMD SD45-2


The EMD SD45-2 is a 6-axle diesel-electric locomotive built by General Motors Electro-Motive Division. EMD built 136 locomotives between 1972 and 1974, primarily for the Atchison, Topeka and [Santa Fe Railway]. The SD45-2 was an improved version of the EMD SD45; the primary visual difference is the absence of flared radiators on the SD45-2.

Design

Part of the EMD Dash 2 line, the SD45-2 was an upgraded SD45. Like the SD45, the SD45-2 had an EMD 645E3 20-cylinder engine producing. The main spotting difference between an SD45 and an SD45-2 was the long hood and the rear radiator. On the SD45 the long hood is flared whereas on the SD45-2 it is vertical and the rear cooling fans are more spread out on the top of the rear of the long hood. This unit used the same frame as the EMD SD40-2 and EMD SD38-2. The largest owner of the SD45-2 was the Atchison, Topeka, & Santa Fe with 90 units, the Clinchfield had 18 units, Seaboard Coast Line had 15 units and Erie Lackawanna rostered 13 units.
A few cabless SD45-2Bs were built by Santa Fe from units undergoing remanufacturing. In all but one case, the dynamic brakes were moved to the opposite end of the hood from the radiators; they were originally near the center of the hood. With no cab, these B-units are controlled from other locomotives.
In September 2015, Norfolk Southern revealed SD45-2 #1700, which was painted back to its Erie Lackawanna color scheme at Chattanooga, Tennessee. This is the second unit from an NS predecessor painted back into its original colors.

Preservation