What were the Virgin Trains Class 158s like?

[ScottGallagher]

Moderator note: Split from

Avanti Class 221s to Cross Country

Anyone know how many 221s are remaining with Avanti and when the remaining ones will transfer across? According to the 805 thread, all booked services will be 805s from December, so presumably they will have transferred by then. (I did search for a thread on this topic but could only find...

www.railforums.co.uk

A bit off topic What did the Virgin 158 interior look like, i know they didn't get Virgin red and Black livery.

 

[MattSGB]

A bit off topic What did the Virgin 158 interior look like, i know they didn't get Virgin red and Black livery.

I might be wrong about this (because I was only 16 years old when I used to get one of these trains), but I think they had the original regional railways livery, and probably the original interior. I don't remember any virgin branding really.

 

[JonathanH]

I think they had the original regional railways livery

Yes, although the word Express was removed from the livery.

Crosscountry-158749-Reading-311099a

Crosscountry Trains unit 158749 at Reading. Before the arrival of the Voyagers, XC had several 158 units which they used on the Birmingham - Stroud - Swindon service and, as seen here, on services to Portsmouth 31st October 1999

www.flickr.com

probably the original interior

Different moquette

 

[BlueLeanie]

I might be wrong about this (because I was only 16 years old when I used to get one of these trains), but I think they had the original regional railways livery, and probably the original interior. I don't remember any virgin branding really.

Were some of the units branded "Alphaline"?

 

[JonathanH]

Were some of the units branded "Alphaline"?

Not CrossCountry ones. 'Alphaline' was a Wales & West rebrand for its 158 services.

 

[The Prisoner]

Virgin dropped the 158s very quickly upon taking over as they didn't feel they were an Inter City appropriate product. Made no effort to brand the few they operated.

 

[JonathanH]

Virgin dropped the 158s very quickly upon taking over as they didn't feel they were an Inter City appropriate product.

Yes, the 158 operated services were among the first converted to Voyagers in the latter part of 2001, but they still operated them for almost five years.

 

[driver9000]

I might be wrong about this (because I was only 16 years old when I used to get one of these trains), but I think they had the original regional railways livery, and probably the original interior. I don't remember any virgin branding really.

I was a similar age when Intercity started using 158s and travelled on them fairly regularly. From memory the moquette was red similar to hauled Intercity coaches and they had a small dedicated 1st class section. At the inner vestibule they also had a BT payphone and Virgin made no changes to the livery or interiors.

 

[ajs]

I remember the Virgin 158s when they were introduced on a Portsmouth Harbour to Manchester service. This must have been in the mid to late 1990s. It was a single unit but can’t remember where the service originated- presumably Manchester. It left Portsmouth Harbour about 1735 and went via Havant & Guildford to Reading,Birmingham New Street and on to Manchester where it must have arrived around 2300 hours,

The Virgin 158s had a small First Class Section and smoking was permitted in part of the train.

Was later replaced by 4 car Voyager.

 

[D6130]

Virgin also used them on Manchester Airport-Glasgow/Edinburgh services for a while.

 

[ChiefPlanner]

Internally they had deteriorated through lack of proper cleaning etc - cannot remember now where they were mainained.

Regardless - Wessex Trains were happy to get them , somewhere along the line they got properly looked after amd refurbished.....

 

[43096]

Internally they had deteriorated through lack of proper cleaning etc - cannot remember now where they were mainained.

Newton Heath, from memory, along with the eight First North Western 158s (752-759). How they got back to depot, I don’t remember.

 

[Wilts Wanderer]

My memory was that they had the original Regional Railways interior. I assumed the First Class section was the same as the Scotrail fleet, particularly as the units (158746-750?) were effectively the final units of the original batch - 158751 onward were the all-standard class EXPRESS units I think?

I remember the grey curtains of the First Class section in particular, from a Portsmouth to Stafford journey I made in about 1999. I recall the train was going to Blackpool but it may have been Manchester if I’m mistaken.

 

[TheHovisKid]

I think (didn't IC have them before Virgin?) that the handles on the top of the seats were red not blue.

Regular 2 car set on the last train south of Carlisle at night, wedged.

 

[JonathanH]

Internally they had deteriorated through lack of proper cleaning etc - cannot remember now where they were mainained.

I think it was Newton Heath but I think one will have been in Birmingham and another in Edinburgh overnight

I assumed the First Class section was the same as the Scotrail fleet, particularly as the units (158746-750?) were effectively the final units of the original batch - 158751 onward were the all-standard class EXPRESS units I think?

Scotrail's allocation was 158701 to 158746. 158747 onwards were the standard class units. CrossCountry took 158747 to 158751 and fitted first class accommodation. I think there was a rearrangement of the fleet used in the North of England to free up these five units.

 

[Wilts Wanderer]

Scotrail's allocation was 158701 to 158746. 158747 onwards were the standard class units. CrossCountry took 158747 to 158751 and fitted first class accommodation. I think there was a rearrangement of the fleet used in the North of England to free up these five units.

Are you sure? The Virgin units had the same bespoke snowploughs as the Scotrail allocation which suggests they were not RR NE units before Intercity pinched them in the early/mid 90s.

 

[Helvellyn]

Are you sure? The Virgin units had the same bespoke snowploughs as the Scotrail allocation which suggests they were not RR NE units before Intercity pinched them in the early/mid 90s.

Yes, they came from Regional Railways North East along with the aforementioned transfers to Regional Railways North West, with all units based at Newton Heath (think they had all previously been Neville Hill).

The InterCity units were initially used to replace loco-hauled Edinburgh/Glasgow to Manchester services that were extended through to the Airport when it gained the rail link. They got new seat covers as already mentioned and a small 9 seat First Class section wirh 2+1 seating, which i think was of the same type Network SouthEast jad fitted to the Class 159s.

It was an odd transfer but with no loco run-round facilities at Mancheater Airport it was obviously something that someone managed to make a business case for doing.

 

[Wilts Wanderer]

Yes, they came from Regional Railways North East along with the aforementioned transfers to Regional Railways North West, with all units based at Newton Heath (think they had all previously been Neville Hill).

The InterCity units were initially used to replace loco-hauled Edinburgh/Glasgow to Manchester services that were extended through to the Airport when it gained the rail link. They got new seat covers as already mentioned and a small 9 seat First Class section wirh 2+1 seating, which i think was of the same type Network SouthEast jad fitted to the Class 159s.

It was an odd transfer but with no loco run-round facilities at Mancheater Airport it was obviously something that someone managed to make a business case for doing.

Thanks for this, so in that case I wonder what the deal with the snowploughs was then.

IC utilised them in several ways, the SX diagrams in 1994 have a couple of round trips between Manchester and Birmingham NS, a morning peak Preston-Birmingham via the WCML and an evening peak return, in addition to the Airport-Scotland runs.

 

[Bletchleyite]

Moderator note: Split from

Avanti Class 221s to Cross Country

Anyone know how many 221s are remaining with Avanti and when the remaining ones will transfer across? According to the 805 thread, all booked services will be 805s from December, so presumably they will have transferred by then. (I did search for a thread on this topic but could only find...

www.railforums.co.uk

A bit off topic What did the Virgin 158 interior look like, i know they didn't get Virgin red and Black livery.

The seat moquette had red on it (InterCity red - Virgin didn't do a proper refurb on them and didn't want to put their name to them). I can't remember if it was standard pattern or a different one. The actual seats were standard and in the standard layout in Standard (!)

One coach was a half smoker! (Different era there). The other coach had a small 2+1 First Class section not dissimilar to that on the 159s.

 

[Peter Mugridge]

Are you sure? The Virgin units had the same bespoke snowploughs as the Scotrail allocation which suggests they were not RR NE units before Intercity pinched them in the early/mid 90s.

I captured 158 749 + 158 751 eastbound towards Newcastle through Deansgate on 2nd February 1991; so a couple of years before Virgin had them - no snowploughs fitted unless they're hidden behind the front valence.

 

[Wilts Wanderer]

That’s interesting, I wonder if they were subsequently fitted due to running in Scotland. I’m certain 158751 and others had them later.

 

[Helvellyn]

That’s interesting, I wonder if they were subsequently fitted due to running in Scotland. I’m certain 158751 and others had them later.

Definitely in place by 1996 based on this picture of 158747 at Penrith.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/66289212@N07/44774585024

I wonder if their use over Shap and Beattock saw them fitted after some early problems?

 

[sprinterguy]

That’s interesting, I wonder if they were subsequently fitted due to running in Scotland. I’m certain 158751 and others had them later.

A photo of 158751 in July 1993 shows it still with the original style of obstacle deflectors/air dams, so it seems that they were retrofitted with snowploughs later than the Scottish allocated units were, presumably only when they transferred to the Intercity sector.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

What were the Virgin Trains Class 158s like? Certainly noisy on a 3+ hour run from Haymarket to Manchester.

 

[Wilts Wanderer]

Off topic, but this must be a pretty unique photo, a 4-car 158!
https://www.flickr.com/photos/18824...oPBPKz-2jGv1os-dxqBM8-2m1Ssin-2pArmBw-2mHt9PN

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 28 Dec 2024 ==

It looks like 749 received its snowploughs by the start of 1996, going by this photograph. Also interesting that it is stabled on Saltley rather than Tyseley, although by then I suppose the fragmentation of IC and RR was fully complete.

158749 14.01.1996

158749 formed of 52749 and 57749 is seen stabled at Saltley. Units 158747 - 158751 were to end up operated by Virgin Trains. 158749 was disbanded by First Great Western and one car was reformed into 158960 and the other was reformed into 158961.

www.flickr.com

There is also a photo of 750 on Saltley, complete with ploughs, in April 1995.

 

[railsuntcommun]

I regularly caught a Virgin XC from Liverpool Lime Street-Wolverhampton on Saturdays around 1999/2000 (the 1035 from memory; it went on to Portsmouth Harbour). Interiors were the original Regional Railways fittings and moquette. I don't remember if there was first class, but I certainly never saw IC red moquette.

 

[Bletchleyite]

I regularly caught a Virgin XC from Liverpool Lime Street-Wolverhampton on Saturdays around 1999/2000 (the 1035 from memory; it went on to Portsmouth Harbour). Interiors were the original Regional Railways fittings and moquette. I don't remember if there was first class, but I certainly never saw IC red moquette.

I wonder were they built as standard Regional Railways then converted later? The ones I recall using definitely had red moquette, though I can't remember if it was the normal pattern with a red fleck (like WYPTE used) or more IC like.

There definitely was first class; the other vehicle was a half-smoker (!)

 

[sprinterguy]

I wonder were they built as standard Regional Railways then converted later?

Yep, they were standard Regional Railways sets with the usual interiors until modified at or after 1994, as per some previous historical comments.

 

[edwin_m]

Virgin dropped the 158s very quickly upon taking over as they didn't feel they were an Inter City appropriate product.

Then they introduced Voyagers. Hmmm...

 

[Mogz]

The daily Liverpool-Edinburgh was a two-car 158 in the early days of VT.

Express livery but without Express branding.

The interior had red-ish pink seats (otherwise original seat type and layout), a small 2+1 First Class, an onboard trolley service, and a pay phone which took phone-cards and really gobbled up your units if you tried to use it.