Diesel locomotive break down. Hydraulic transmission for locomotives was developed in Germany. There is still debate over the relative merits of hydraulic vs. electrical transmission systems: advantages claimed for hydraulic systems include lower weight, high reliability, and lower capital cost. By the 21st century, for diesel locomotive traction worldwide the majority of countries used diesel–electric designs, with diesel hydraulic designs not found in use outside Germany and Japan, and some neighbouring states, where it is used in designs for freight work. In Germany and Finland, diesel–hydraulic systems have achieved high reliability in operation. In the UK the diesel–hydraulic principle gained a poor
Diesel locomotive Diesel locomotive A diesel locomotive is a type of railway locomotive in which the prime mover is a diesel engine. Several types of diesel locomotive have been developed, differing mainly in the means by which mechanical power is conveyed to the driving wheels. Early internal combusition locomotives and railcars used kerosene and gasoline as their fuel. Dr. Rudolf Diesel patented his first compression ignition engine in 1898, and steady improvements in the design of diesel engines reduced their physical size and improved their power-to-weight ratio to a point where one could be mounted in a locomotive. Internal combustion engines only