D7628
Image courtesy: Peter Fisher.

No. D7628 “Sybilla”

Service History

Class BR Class 25
Wheel arrangement Bo-Bo
Designer Sulzer Ltd.
Built in Manchester
Entered service 12 August 1965 at March
Withdrawn 1 March 1987 at Cricklewood East
Length of service 34 years, 10 months & 2 days
Companies British Rail
Numbers carried D7628 (1967-74), 25278 (1975-87)
Names carried None in BR service
'Sybilla' in preservation

As part of the Modernisation Plan in the 1950s, the lightweight, multi-purpose Sulzer Type 2 was introduced. When the initial version proved underpowered, a new variant was built - these later became the Class 24 and Class 25 diesels respectively. Three hundred and twenty seven Class 25s were built, and became such a common sight on the railways that they were nicknamed "rats" by enthusiasts.

D7628 was built by Beyer Peacock in Manchester as one of the last batch of locos, and entered service at Tinsley in October 1965. After a spell at Wath, it moved to the Midland Region in 1967. By then numbered 25278, this loco was the last of its class to receive a general overhaul, at Derby, in 1981 and was officially withdrawn on 15 March 1987.

Painted in the two-tone green on early examples of the type and named ‘Sybilla’ at the request of her previous owner Jos de Crau, it can be seen in regular use on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway (NYMR). In the winter of 2017, it was repainted by the Carriage & Wagon department in the same scheme with the addition of the British Rail (BR) "Cycling Lion" crest that had previously been missing.