Electric locomotive 372 008 of the Czechoslovak State Railways.

■ Finely-detailed model with separately attached plug-in parts
■ Finely-spoked wheels

In the 1980s, the CSD and the DR decided to procure dual-system locomotives in order to simplify the constantly increasing flow of traffic and operational processes in cross-border transport along the Berlin-Dresden-Prague line.
The locomotive builders in the GDR, the LEW Hennigsdorf, were operating at full capacity at this time, meaning that the Czech Skoda locomotive factory, which had already had various experiences with such machines, received the contract. The CSD classes ES 499.1 and 499.2 served as a basis. However, the German 15 kV/16⅔ Hz electricity system was uncharted territory for them. The double order included 15 locomotives from the 372 class for the CSD and 20 locomotives of the 230 class for the DR.
The general-purpose engines were deployed in passenger and freight transport. With an hourly output of 3,260 kW, a maximum speed of 120 km/h could be achieved. In Germany, the locomotives of this class were lovingly nicknamed “Knödelpresse” (dumpling press). The Czech counterpart went by the name of “Bastard” in the neighbouring country.