Prototype: German Federal Railroad (DB) class 218 general-purpose locomotive. Diesel hydraulic locomotive with electric train heating. Without exhaust hoods. Red / beige experimental paint scheme of 1974. Use: Passenger and freight trains. Road number 218 217-8. 

Model: Era IV. The frame and body are constructed of die-cast metal. The locomotive has a 21-pin digital connector. It also has a can motor with a bell-shaped armature and a flywheel, centrally mounted. 4 axles powered through cardan shafts. Traction tires. The headlights are maintenance-free, warm white LEDs. They will work in conventional operation and can be controlled digitally. The headlights can be turned off at the end of the locomotive with Engineer's Cab 1 or 2, when a 66849 decoder is used in digital operation. The locomotive has separately applied metal grab irons. It also has a detailed buffer beam. The locomotive has NEM coupler pockets. Length over the buffers 189 mm / 7-7/16". 

Road No. 218 217-8 in TEE Paint Scheme. The class 218 in service in its crimson paint scheme was chosen by the German Federal Railroad to be used as the test bed for the new paint scheme at that time. Two locomotives, road nos. 218 217-8 and 218 218-6, were the first units on the German Federal Railroad in 1974 to get the new paint scheme. The latter, road no. 218 218-6, was painted in ocean blue / beige, which then became the rule for most of the locomotive classes. Road no. 218 217-8, another unit, initially still without the striking exhaust hoods, was painted in red / beige in a scheme that was the same as on the sample, road no. 218 218-6: Only this was the TEE paint scheme. This elegant paint scheme was limited to only this one locomotive and it did nothing to gain it TEE status. Road no. 218 217-8 in red / beige performed its normal service far from the TEE routes and was a consistently popular theme for railroad photographers until it was repainted years later the same as other locomotives.