Heljan have announced a new range of O Gauge Class 37 diesel locomotives covering the  'refurbished' 37/5 and 37/7 subclass vehicles for the first time ever in the range! 

7 variations are available to pre-order right now covering a selection of pre- and post-privatisation livery options. 

Please note - Heljan are now switching to the "Order Book Deadline" process for their new models - which means that their factory orders will be based on customer demand. Ergo, we advise you to place your pre-orders ahead of 30th January 2026 - as after this date, stocks will be limited and the models at risk of selling out ahead of release.

In due course, the range will be expanded to include centre headcode Class  37/5s and Class 37/7s and a fully retooled Class 37/4 ETS-fitted passenger  variant. 

Design work on all versions is complete, tooling is currently in progress and the first engineering samples have just arrived for review. Proposed liveries for the centre headcode and Class 37/4 batches will be announced at a later date. 

The first sample of this superb new refurbished Class 37 will be on display at the  Modern Image O Gauge Show (MIOG) at Crewe Heritage Centre this weekend (October 25/26). 

This first batch of 37/5 and 37/7 models detailed above are due for release in Q4 2026.

The Class 37 (aka English Electric Type 3) were produced as part of British Rail’s modernisation plan. They became a very familiar sight across the network, in particular forming the main motive power for InterCity services in East Anglia and Scotland and performed well on other secondary routes and regional services for many years. Despite being over 50 years old, the class are still in use to this day - with over 60 in active use on passenger, freight and departmental duties as well as 30 preserved examples.

Class 37/5

This class were updated in similar fashion to the 37/4 subclass, except that they did not receive electric train heating and some were fitted with Sandite ports. Locomotives previously numbered between 37001 and 37119 (those which had split headcode boxes) were given new numbers from 37501 upwards (curtailed at 37521); those previously numbered between 37120 and 37308 were renumbered from 37699 downwards (curtailed at 37667). Nine locomotives from the first batch and three from the second were later modified for use with the aborted Channel Tunnel sleeper Nightstar project, reclassified 37/6 and renumbered 37601–37612.

Class 37/7

As part of the major refurbishment scheme of the Class 37 locomotives in the 1980s, another freight dedicated fleet of 44 Class 37s was created, the Class 37/7 subclass, which was very similar to the 37/5 subclass except for plating over of a bodyside window and the addition of a ballast weight to give extra 'pulling power' when hauling heavy freight trains, such as the metals trains in South Wales. 

Again, like the 37/5s, there were two batches completed; from phase 1 and phase 2 Class 37/0 locos. The batch numbered 37701 upwards (curtailed at 37719) were from phase 1 build locos and have the flush front ends and nose-mounted horns, whilst the batch numbered from 37899 downwards (curtailed at 37 883) were rebuilds from phase 2 locos, having the central headcode box (plated over) and roof-mounted horns. A further batch was created; locos numbered 37796–37803 had a different type of electrical equipment fitted (from Brush), as part of a trial, and differ from the other locos in the subclass internally.

Information provided via Wikipedia