Nostalgia & History > Pacific Electric PCC's

Last I heard, they were purchased by a third rail line in Argentina, who later replaced them with Key System units. Do any of the PCC's still exist or were they all scrapped?

Thanks in advance.

rdg484 Wrote:
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> Do any of the PCC's still exist or were
> they all scrapped?

Remember that PCC technically refers to not the body style per se but the controls, brake system, and trucks. PE's weren't the sturdiest but they could have could have gone to places like Philadelphia.

http://world.nycsubway.org/perl/show?17343

None survives, but in tribute, Muni #1061 is painted in the red, orange, and silver livery of the PE PCCs, inspired by the famed “Daylight” steam train colors of PE’s big brother Southern Pacific. Today, every F-line trip passes Southern Pacific’s old headquarters at 1 Market Street.

http://www.streetcar.org/fline/streetcars/pccs/1061/1061.html

Starting from July 1952, all cars went through a complete freshening program at the PE's main Torrance shops complex. After three years of storage in the subway, all 30 cars were sold to General Urquiza Railway in Buenos Aires, Argentina. None of them were preserved.

http://www.sptc.spb.ru/pacificelec.htm

Some other PE in Argentina,

http://donross.railspot.com/dr123.htm

Boy, no answer after all this time?

http://www.railroad.net/forums/messages.asp?TopicID=15990

What happened to the Key units sent there? Any survivors to this day?

stash Wrote:
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> What happened to the Key units sent there? Any
> survivors to this day?

That I don't know. Evidently all 29 Key System cars sent to Argentina were retired with the PE PCC's in 1974 when the Toshiba cars arrived.

http://donross.railspot.com/dr105.htm

http://www.inch.com/~era/downloads/1996_hdl_4_preview.pdf

"29 were sold to Argentina, 4 were preserved at museums and other 53 were scrapped."

http://www.sptc.spb.ru/keycars.htm

For those interested,

http://membres.lycos.fr/martinc057/

http://donross.railspot.com/dr087.htm

http://donross.railspot.com/dr032.htm

http://donross.railspot.com/dr359.htm

http://donross.railspot.com/

coachyard Wrote:


<<Boy, no answer after all this time?>>



Wow, someone actually reads railroad.net?

;>)

rdg484 Wrote:
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> Wow, someone actually reads railroad.net?

True enough.

Excellent responses by all on this thread. Each of you wrote your own Subject heading. Most responders just use whatever the last person used. How many threads aren't even read because of no new / original subject heading?

By the way, I only got to ride the Key System articulated units once. That was in 1957 from S.F. to Oakland in the evening, enroute to the Santa Fe's Golden Gate, which departed from Emeryville (West Oakland where the Home Depot store is now located). Going across the Bay Bridge on the lower deck in one of these units was a lot more fun than riding in a car on the upper deck. But you can now ride something comparable - try the articulated street cars in S.F., especially when several are coupled together - a similar experience!

I beleive thare are one or two in museums in Argentina. They were modified, thru doors and third rail, not looking very much like a PCC.They even kept their paint scheme, wings and all, but the color was changed to brown. They went there to join all the 1100 class cars that were sold to the same railway in the early 1950's.