Finally got my first ride on an actual Renatus unit today (not 448), was really beginning to think it'd never happen. The noise level difference between these and the other 321s is night and day, they aren't quite as quiet as current new EMUs but they're very close. The doors not continuously rattling on 448 meant that acoustically it was quite a pleasant experience. There's still the bang when other units pass but it does look as if some attempt has been made to improve this - the doors actually shut properly now, whereas they very rarely do on the regular 321s. Time will tell how long that lasts.
The same duff PIS is still being used I see, though it was working on 321321 this evening. The seating is much firmer than that on regular 321s, but is at least the correct upright angle and height. Comfortable enough, but definitely not bucking the current trend for hard seats.
The A/C was welcome today, but honestly, was really a bit on the feeble side. Taking a full minute to come back on after neutral sections doesn't help but even then, I was on the unit for 35 minutes, boarded the train covered in sweat from my earlier journey and hadn't quite cooled down to a comfortable temperature by the time I arrived at Shenfield. There was also no sensation of getting off the train to find it warmer outside, even though it was quite a warm day. If I had to hazard a guess I'd say the internal temperature was around 24-25 degrees rather than the 21-22 A/C systems are normally set to. It's easy to see why this system isn't proving satisfactory, but nonetheless it was still far better than relying on open windows on a day like today. During the heatwave earlier in the month, though? I'm not sure how I'd feel about it.
The overall fit and finish of the train seems quite nice at first glance, overall the interior has been updated pretty well to look modern despite the age of the unit itself and I think this has been done better than, say, SWT's refurbishments of their Mk3 EMUs, predominantly because it doesn't turn them into obviously Metro-oriented units, though no carpets does mean that isn't entirely absent. Look closer though and you can see from the slightly ill-fitting panels, unsmoothed patches of sealant, exposed screwheads and the like, the job has definitely been done at low cost.
Fundamentally I'd much rather travel on one of these than a regular 321, so arguably they've done their job. There is no denying, however, that at this stage in the franchise, short of an absolute disaster with the 720s, it is too little, too late. I look forward to seeing these units more regularly, for the very brief period they form any real part of the GEML fleet.
