Decided to run my Acela yesterday afternoon after several months of siding time. Room temp was about 60. It purred right out and I started checking out its features. Every thing worked perfectly until I opened the doors and the dreaded flashing lights appeared under stuck doors on 4 out of the 6 passenger cars. In frustration, I shut down the power to stop the flashing and ran it for about 15 minutes along with my sante fe double decker. Shut the power off when I got a short phone call.

When I started it up again ,all the doors worked perfectly! The same thing happened about 6 mo. ago, but I thought it was a fluke! The doors have all been oiled and "slick" put around the edges and franes of the doors!

Moral of story-- warm up acela before you despair!

stan

Best way to warm up your Acela:

Scott SMith

No really...didn't see that one coming at all.

quote:

Originally posted by scott.smith:
Best way to warm up your Acela:

Scott SMith

You sold yours to someone on the forum, right?



.

Scott! LOL !! I knew you'd e be there!!

Wow...surprised Scott commented on Acela... I mean he ONLY paid 2x RETAIL!!!

Warmed mine up by selling it to a guy in Texas!!

quote:

You sold yours to someone on the forum, right?

No, I did sell it to a dealer at York, who said he was very aware of the issues.

quote:

I mean he ONLY paid 2x RETAIL!!!

I did pay full retail for it.

Scott Smith

I shared scott's feelings when the lights came on on 4 cars(I returned 3 cars plus the engine twice to lionel!!). But once all the doors worked, it was a case of rekindeled, true love! I don't have another consist that gives me 1/4 the pleasure of my Acela.

stan

quote:

Originally posted by scott.smith:

quote:

You sold yours to someone on the forum, right?

No, I did sell it to a dealer at York, who said he was very aware of the issues.

quote:

I mean he ONLY paid 2x RETAIL!!!

I did pay full retail for it.

Scott Smith

Just havin fun...I would like to buy one at auction...where I could afford to keep it as a "shelf queen"...the IDEA was admirable!!!

quote:

Just havin fun...I would like to buy one at auction...where I could afford to keep it as a "shelf queen"...the IDEA was admirable!!!

Location: Forest Hill, Maryland | Registered:: March 20, 2004

Scotty, "I thought You said you pasted the catalog picture on your wall" (To display) *After you sold it...

Scott:

I am surprised that Jerry C. hasn't sent you an autographed photo of the Acela set to give you fond memories of your purchase. If you have not received it yet, I am sure it will arrive shortly.

The Ultimate Lionel POSTER CHILD...the Acela Kid...and then he has the KAHOONIES to sell it on the Forum to a "brother"...LMAO!!!

Art mirrors life:

Just like my love/hate relationship with the real Acela...

Love the comfort/convienence/concept...
Hate that it's restrained from ever reaching it's full potential...

quote:

Originally posted by Ron Blume:
The Ultimate Lionel POSTER CHILD...the Acela Kid...and then he has the KAHOONIES to sell it on the Forum to a "brother"...LMAO!!!

LOL!! He tried to sell it on the forum ... BUT... his words came back to haunt him...LOL!!!

I just took my Acela off the wall after months of running nothing but Legacy locos. It took a little time to get all six cars coupled properly but it sure was worth it because everything works just as it should... doors... pantographs... lights...WOW!
After 10 minutes of run time I fell in love all over again...this is the coolest toy train ever made by anyone anywhere!!

Most carefully worded Buy/Sell Forum post in history.

quote:

Originally posted by Frank53:
Most carefully worded Buy/Sell Forum post in history.

ROTFLMAO!!
It's funny how stuff you say in anger or without thinking can come back to bite you in the butt!!

By the way Frank... I've been really enjoying all the photos I've seen of your layout recently! Watching your progress and what you've done with simple post-war trains is very cool! Nice work...

It was a bad design from the get go.

1) It needed a bigger radius than the advertised O-72.
2) Lionel optical coupler was a bust, they know it was bad and told me they were going to do a recall. They later decided that a recall was going to be too expensive and they were already working on their Legacy recall excuse me upgrade.

Some of you would buy dog crap from your favorite manufacturer and tell us it made a great looking train load just because it came in a orange or purple box. Some of you believe that your manufacturer can do no wrong. Many of us were taken advantage of buying this over priced hunk of plastic. Others are happy wearing their orange shaded glasses. If the manufacturer followed through on their recall as promised I would not have sold it. Since this Acela lesson I have cut back purchases from that company--They have the nerve to tell me that it cost to much to repair something that cost me nearly $3000.00.

If these were so perfect than the manufacturer would not have been working on a coupler redesign to begin with. The company that bought mine from me was fully aware of the Acela issues.

quote:

Live the Dream!

If you believe that this train is not a lemon than you are dreaming--for those of us in the real world we got abandoned and broken promises. I honestly don't believe any of them worked as advertised.
Scott Smith

quote:

Originally posted by scott.smith:
It was a bad design from the get go.

1) It needed a bigger radius than the advertised O-72.
2) Lionel optical coupler was a bust, they know it was bad and told me they were going to do a recall. They later decided that a recall was going to be too expensive and they were already working on their Legacy recall excuse me upgrade.

Some of you would buy dog crap from your favorite manufacturer and tell us it made a great looking train load just because it came in a orange or purple box. Some of you believe that your manufacturer can do no wrong. Many of us were taken advantage of buying this over priced hunk of plastic. Others are happy wearing their orange shaded glasses. If the manufacturer followed through on their recall as promised I would not have sold it. Since this Acela lesson I have cut back purchases from that company--They have the nerve to tell me that it cost to much to repair something that cost me nearly $3000.00.

If these were so perfect than the manufacturer would not have been working on a coupler redesign to begin with. The company that bought mine from me was fully aware of the Acela issues.

quote:

Live the Dream!

If you believe that this train is not a lemon than you are dreaming--for those of us in the real world we got abandoned and broken promises. I honestly don't believe any of them worked as advertised.
Scott Smith

I would really try therapy of a professional nature...I think we FORUMITES are starting to take TOO MUCH pleasure from your pain instead of helping you build a bridge to get over this. I personally have wasted more than $3,000 on unwise purchases during my 37 years in the hobby...and LIFE goes on!!! It's kinda like getting divorced...nobody wants to hear about it after a couple weeks!!! Perhaps you could look up the date of your first Acela post, and reason more clearly that it's time to let it rest and move on with your hobby. Unfortunately, I believe you have UNFAIRLY discouraged those with layouts capable of handling the Acela from persuing this set...I am still getting one, because I like it after seeing it run on LARGE layouts. If you truly got it fixed, it is incomprehensible to me after all your trouble that you saw fit to PEDDLE it...but that is none of my business. Just try to let a thread go by without taking the fun out of it for the rest of us...THANKS IN ADVANCE!!!

If it was an American auto Mfg. the feds would make them recall pull part repair and replace. lOOK AT fmc LATEST ON THE CRUISE CONTOL PART MADE BY tEXAS iNSTRUMENTS. This has been goin on since 1997 or so a total or 47,000,000 and a lot of zeros at hundreds of dollars per car. And FMC took no government $$$ and they are still controlled by the family.

Maybe a class action lawsuit against the companies would clean up their slipshod design, and sloppy mfg practices.

quote:

Originally posted by ope express:
If it was an American auto Mfg. the feds would make them recall pull part repair and replace. lOOK AT fmc LATEST ON THE CRUISE CONTOL PART MADE BY tEXAS iNSTRUMENTS. This has been goin on since 1997 or so a total or 47,000,000 and a lot of zeros at hundreds of dollars per car. And FMC took no government $$$ and they are still controlled by the family.

You're comparing apples to potatoes(I won't even say oranges, since this comparison is so off base).

People can be hurt/killed due to the automotive cruise control issue. (Or substitute what many of the automobile recalls involve, the issue of safety. Remember the Firestone tires issue a few years back on Explorers being another example?)

No one will die because their Acela doors don't open, cars don't tilt quite right, or a pantograph doesn't cooperate once in a while.

-Dave

quote:

Originally posted by scott.smith:
It was a bad design from the get go.

1) It needed a bigger radius than the advertised O-72.
2) Lionel optical coupler was a bust, they know it was bad and told me they were going to do a recall. They later decided that a recall was going to be too expensive and they were already working on their Legacy recall excuse me upgrade.

Some of you would buy dog crap from your favorite manufacturer and tell us it made a great looking train load just because it came in a orange or purple box. Some of you believe that your manufacturer can do no wrong. Many of us were taken advantage of buying this over priced hunk of plastic. Others are happy wearing their orange shaded glasses. If the manufacturer followed through on their recall as promised I would not have sold it. Since this Acela lesson I have cut back purchases from that company--They have the nerve to tell me that it cost to much to repair something that cost me nearly $3000.00.

If these were so perfect than the manufacturer would not have been working on a coupler redesign to begin with. The company that bought mine from me was fully aware of the Acela issues.

quote:

Live the Dream!

If you believe that this train is not a lemon than you are dreaming--for those of us in the real world we got abandoned and broken promises. I honestly don't believe any of them worked as advertised.
Scott Smith

Scott I understand. And your are absolutely right. I think clearly you are not bad mouthing Lionel as a whole, but you have every right to voice your opinion on the belief that they got this one wrong. I just want to point out that despite Scott's opinion on the Acela, he is a consistent positive contributor to this forum and the enjoyment of model trains regardless of the manufacture. His post have personally helped me enjoy the hobby and he should not be brushed with a broad stroke because of one opinion.

quote:

Originally posted by scott.smith:
It was a bad design from the get go.

1) It needed a bigger radius than the advertised O-72.
2) Lionel optical coupler was a bust, they know it was bad and told me they were going to do a recall. They later decided that a recall was going to be too expensive and they were already working on their Legacy recall excuse me upgrade.

Some of you would buy dog crap from your favorite manufacturer and tell us it made a great looking train load just because it came in a orange or purple box. Some of you believe that your manufacturer can do no wrong. Many of us were taken advantage of buying this over priced hunk of plastic. Others are happy wearing their orange shaded glasses. If the manufacturer followed through on their recall as promised I would not have sold it. Since this Acela lesson I have cut back purchases from that company--They have the nerve to tell me that it cost to much to repair something that cost me nearly $3000.00.

If these were so perfect than the manufacturer would not have been working on a coupler redesign to begin with. The company that bought mine from me was fully aware of the Acela issues.

quote:

Live the Dream!

If you believe that this train is not a lemon than you are dreaming--for those of us in the real world we got abandoned and broken promises. I honestly don't believe any of them worked as advertised.
Scott Smith

I don't recall reading any of these points in Scott's ad on the Buy/Sell Forum to sell the Acela.

quote:

I don't recall reading any of these points in Scott's ad on the Buy/Sell Forum to sell the Acela

Before it went on the buy sell forum I had my dealer make sure their were no issues and he tested at the store before I boxed it up to sell. Was I convinced there would never be another issue--NO because the design was bad. Lionel deciding not to do the recall was the final straw. But it should have worked as well or better than any of the others out there. My dealer thought that most of my issues were due to the O-72 track I run my trains on---my room is only 9 by 9. If it says O-72 then it should run as advertised!!! If he was convinced that it was working 100% that was good enough for me--I was sick of the thing by that time.
Scott Smith

I'll tell you one more thing that did me in. Jerry C's quote in the New York Times laughing about how the Lionel Acela's break down as often as the real thing. This is after they decided not to do the recall. That was just rubbing my nose in it. I sent him an e-mail voicing my displeasure of not doing a recall and then joking in a national newspaper about how bad the product was.....He ignored it of course-- guess I would have to be the purchasing agent for Target or another big box store to get a reply. The +$150,000 I have spent in this hobby over the last 10 years doesn't make me a big enough customer to be concerned with.

Scott Smith

Scott:

I hear you stomping your feet and crashing pots and pans in the kitchen every time the word 'Acela' is mentioned. Like it is your mission in life to personally hit the Lionel Goliath in the head with a rock.

I also read posts by Rich and win and several others who run the acela often who say they absolutely love it and have no problems.

In the middle are folks who have sent it back to Lionel and have received continuous repairs of various items - I seem to recall most often mentioned are pantographs.

Point being - it may not be universally as good as Rich says it is.

It's also probably not as universally bad as you say it is.

It's somewhere in the middle and certain conditions such as layout size and track configuration probably have something to do with its running characteristics.

quote:

Originally posted by scott.smith:

The +$150,000 I have spent in this hobby over the last 10 years

Scott Smith

And you wonder why your wife hates trains?

quote:

It's somewhere in the middle and certain conditions such as layout size and track configuration probably have something to do with its running characteristics.

I agree with your statement---so it didn't run as advertised. Jerry C thought that was funny. I work for my money--I failed to see the humor--and now that I think about it: his statement to the NYT was the final straw. I don't buy any Lionel products that are cutting edge. I passed on the big boy with Legacy. I will pass on the new Vision--I will no longer be Lionel's Crash Test Dummy.
That being said I do have legacy and I have the Pere Marquette Berkshire--which is excellent. I just will not buy their cutting edge technology until after it has been shown to work--because they won't back it up.
Scott Smith

I'm sure I won't be popular with this statement but I think Scott is being more than fair to Lionel, if I were hung with a $3,000.00 boat anchor I don't think I would buy anything wearing the big L.

I will say I have bought Lionel products I'm very happy with (Union Pacific 844 FEF) and some like my Texas Special that I wish I would not have spent the money on. It looks very toy like for what it cost.

quote:

Originally posted by scott.smith:

I just will not buy their cutting edge technology until after it has been shown to work--because they won't back it up.

Scott Smith

That's your opinion that they won't back it up.

Ask the folks who have sent back the Acela a few times and received replacements and repairs and have had it come back running as advertised.

They wouldn't fix it to YOUR expectations - whatever that may have been, but they have exceeded the expectations of many others.

Another lesson I have learned in business along the way. Some business just isn't worth having, and some customers will NEVER be satisfied.

You are certainly entitled to your opinion and your dissatisfaction.

However, I would wager the Lionel Product Development folks are probably ok with the fact that you've cut back on your Lionel purchases.

I'm really not attacking you Scott - even if it seems that way. I admit I did find something eerie about your for sale post after you so vigorously trashed the product, and I have mentioned it more than once - shame on me.

I do think that perhaps you were trying to get a lot of train to run on a minimum sized layout. Yes they said o72. But I do think some of the Acela features might have been designed to run on a larger layout with optimally executed track work.

quote:

It needed a bigger radius than the advertised O-72.

No, it didn't/doesn't.

Mine runs just fine and dandy on 0-72. At high speed. In both directions. Mine runs great in every way. Should we play 'Lionel Nation 2' for you again?

Bob Bubeck

Hey, I just ordered the "Dog Crap Express" from my Lionel dealer.

quote:

Originally posted by dorfj2:
Hey, I just ordered the "Dog Crap Express" from my Lionel dealer.

Please don't warm that one up.

shane:

First, thank you for posting your comments about the warm up. Those of us who love our Acela appreciate your comments.

It appears that everytime anyone posts anything about the Lionel Acela, good or bad, for the most part, out come the largely negative comments. These negative comments would lead an uninformed train enthusiast to summize that every one of the 2,000 sets made were bad. This is simply not so. I would totally agree from this post and previous threads that some of our Forum members who bought this model did not get what they expected in terms of the operations described by Lionel. But may I conclude that those who DID get what they expected and are very happy with their Acelas probably don't post. I guess that it is human nature to vent if you believed you have been short changed. This I understand. But what I don't understand is why it has to go on and on and on.

Well I can speak for two. One of my train buddies and I ordered the Acela at the same time and we love it. So if I can again guess, I know shane likes his, my buddy and I like ours, and maybe from this post and the others on the subject of the Acela, maybe a dozen or so don't; that makes 1,985 that we have not heard from. I think that says it all. And by the way, my buddy and I were well south of $ 3,000 for the set with the add-on cars.

Finally, if you love it, love it. It you hate it, hate it. Unfortunately, I am sure that this is not the last we will hear about the negative Acela comments. If it makes you feel better to vent, then vent.

NOT THAT WARM!!!!!!!!!!

quote:

I just will not buy their cutting edge technology until after it has been shown to work--because they won't back it up.

Scott, I have to disagree. When the Acela works, it is a wonderful model. I made the decision that I would continue to support Lionel after Jon Z. and Mike R. were hired. They have made significant (to me) progress and while I have had my share of DOA from Lionel, they have made everyone (except the Acela) correct (Big Boy, FEF-3, and R-27). In keeping with my philosophy, I modifed my layout to run the Acela, and with Bob's help I got a 7 by 17 with 7 by 6 "L" and all 072 curves to work. The key point I have note seen in any of the Acela threads is that you need a section of straight track at least the length of a car before and after any curve (thanks bob for that tip). That is why my portion of the "L" is a car length even if it messes up the curve back to the 7 by 17 section to be more than 90 degrees.

Lionel support on my Acela has been stellar with two replacement cars, and returns for corections to faulty components around 14 times over the past three years. The continued support of this product beyond the warantee period through the efforts of Mike and Jon are the reason I have continued to support Lionel and its Legacy products even with the failure rate I have experienced. In talking to both Mike and Jon Z at York several times I am convinced of their sincerity and commitment to produce a quality product and back their product when it does fail. Of all the consists I have had, the Acela has provided the greatest pleasure even with its many failures on my layout.

I have the highest respect for Jon and Mike; the promises to me about the recall were made before they were hired.
Scott Smith

I think the Lionel Acela separated the true modelers from the ready to run crowd.

quote:

Originally posted by scott.smith:
If you believe that this train is not a lemon than you are dreaming--for those of us in the real world we got abandoned and broken promises. I honestly don't believe any of them worked as advertised.
Scott Smith

You're welcome to come to my house anytime and run my Acela anytime.

I am in the real world. I don't see why you need to insult those of us who haven't had a problem with our train, which by the way is one of only 3 I own made by Lionel.
I am sorry you had problems with yours.. really I am.

I'm getting really sick of your veiled personal attacks by saying I (by association) must be wearing orange glasses, etc... Of course it's easy to do behind a keyboard and under a stupid hat.

Update: With WineRose46 & EscapeRocks & shane, my buddy and I, that makes five Forum guys we know who love the Acela, about a dozen or so who posted negative comments (don't know if this dozen all actually owned one), that makes about 1,982 we haven't heard from. Hmmm?

Hi Scott, you have a right to be disappointed if not down right angry at Lionel for sticking you with a three thousand dollar train that did not work properly. What surprises me is that they did not offer to give your money back to you. That is not like LIonel at all, they have always been up front with me on things like that.

I have the Acela and add on cars and all of it is still in the shipping boxs. Maybe some day I will pull them out to run them, I don't know. If I don't open the boxs I atlest have a chance of getting my investment back. But, then again if I don't I go aganst my operators code. Oh what to do?

quote:

Originally posted by pennsyk4:
I think the Lionel Acela separated the true modelers from the ready to run crowd.

HMmmmmm.... You might be on to something there Charlie... some folks just aren't up to working with "cutting edge technology" and should stick to the basic ready to run stuff..

byw: my layout is only 8x12 with old Lionel tubular 072 track and switches and my Acela runs fine ...at top speed ...in both directions..

quote:

Originally posted by gg1man:
I have the Acela and add on cars and all of it is still in the shipping boxs. Maybe some day I will pull them out to run them, I don't know. If I don't open the boxs I at least have a chance of getting my investment back. But, then again if I don't I go aganst my operators code. Oh what to do?

Given my experience, I would not purchase another one unless it had been taken out of the box and tested. As indicated in an earlier post this was before Jon and Mike came to Lionel so I think the potential for DOAs such as mine is too great to purchase an unopened box. That being said, Lionel support was been outstanding. Many thanks to Mike and Jon. Without them I would have stopped purchasing Lionel products.

quote:

That being said I do have legacy and I have the Pere Marquette Berkshire--which is excellent. I just will not buy their cutting edge technology until after it has been shown to work--because they won't back it up.
Scott Smith

And what about all those with PS1 engines? MTH really had their backs didn't they. So Scott lets be fair here. No one has your back when it comes to this stuff not working as advertised.

Mario:

Most modern era trains probably would not be catagorized as an "investment". We buy them to run and enjoy. Though your Acela is in the original shipping cartons, I'm not sure you would get your entire purchase price back. So your options are to continue to look at shipping cartons, continue to be challanged to make a decision, or to do what would appear to be logical, open the boxes and run the Acela. With the Lionel support that has been mentioned in this Forum by members, what have you got to loose? If you down right don't like the set or are afraid to open the boxes, then sell the Acela for what you can get and get on with it. My advice for what it's worth is to run it!!!!

quote:

And what about all those with PS1 engines?

1) Mike Wolf didn't make jokes about his products breaking to the New York Times
2) If you buy a new in box Proto I engine from an MTH dealer and you have a problem--they still fix it under warranty.
3) If you are upset about the fact it isn't the latest and greatest--well my IBM 286 won't run Office '97. The Proto I's engines function as advertised when you purchased them--that's more than I can say about the Acela.
4) Yes there is a battery issue (and batteries stink!!!). However there is also a fix for the issue.
5) MTH didn't promise a recall that they later on decided later to cancel.

I am not saying MTH is perfect, I am saying the comparison is invalid. Don't misunderstand me I am not recommending exchanging a pair of Orange shades for purple ones. I am not trying to insult anyone...I just know that there are some that will ignore problems just because it is their favorite manufacturer. I see it everyday in my industry. If the Acela was so good it wouldn't have been the bunt of Jerry C's joke in the NYT.If you have a perfect Acela, great for you at least someone got their moneys worth.
As far as Lionel honoring the warranty longer than expected that was not communicated to the Service Centers. I saw my future repair trips were going to cost me money. I cut my losses. I lost $1500 on the sale of the set. I was not happy with my Acela--however I was angry about a broken promise and then it being joked about to the press. Ha, Ha funny-funny we screwed some our customers out of $3000.00.

Scott Smith

quote:

If you buy a new in box Proto I engine from an MTH dealer and you have a problem--they still fix it under warranty.

Can't you say the same thing about Acela new in the box from the dealer? Not what I meant. It's like my FORD F150, they knew driver side doors were cracking and did nothing because they started to crack after the warranty. Same with the Acela, same with PS1 engines.

Both importers should admit they were lemons suck it up and offer extended warranties. Enough said.

quote:

Can't you say the same thing about Acela new in the box from the dealer?

No I can't say that: Lionel's new warranty policy says if it is new in box and more than 3 years from it's manufactured date it is no longer under warranty.

Scott Smith

In defense of Scott - when he posted his sale ad on the Buy/Sell Forum; he detailed everything that had happened with his Acela. He was up front about it. And he would up selling it to a "dealer" at York and not another forumite. He made sure it had been properly repaired and was in working order before he attempted to sell it.
So, what did he do wrong? In my estimation, NOTHING!