Electric Locomotive for the "Rheingold".

Of Skirting and Pants Creases... The E 10 new construction express locomotive equipped the DB for quick service of its own express train network after steam locomotives had been retired. However, faster speeds were required than previously for express passenger service in the international TEE network. Krauss-Maffei, Henschel, and Siemens developed a high-performance locomotive in 1962, which had a longer gear drive, new trucks, and a modern aerodynamic look. The "pants crease" at the ends, the buffers clad with streamlined fairing, the skirting under the buffer beams, and the side bands for cooling vents improved the shape of the locomotive for 160 km/h / 100 mph and looked good. In the short term this successful design was therefore also taken on for the 150 regular production locomotives still to be built, which were then designated as the class E 10.3. The 31 high-performance locomotives proved themselves with DB flagship trains: "Rheingold", "Rheinpfeil", "Rheinblitz", "Helvetia", and others. The electrical and mechanical systems on the E 10.12 were the technical prerequisite for the next generation of express locomotives: the E 03.