MLX01

The MLX01 (Magnetic Levitation, eXperiment) is an series of nine experimental maglev cars operated by the Railway Technical Research Institute from 1996 to 2011.
==History==
The cars were built from 1996 to 2001 for experimental purposes only. Various end car designs were built, from a wedge-nose design, a cusp-nose design and even one with an ultra-long nose. During testing, the train set various speed and distance records until it was withdrawn around 2011.
==Specifications==
The end cars are 28 meters (91.8 ft) long while the intermediate cars were of lengths varying between 21.6 and 24.3 (79 to 79.7 ft) meters long. Each car was 2.9 (9.5 ft) meters wide and 3.32 (10.8 ft) meters high. The cars adopted a "Jacobs bogie" based on the prototype bogies as seen on the older MLU002. The train could seat up to 68.
==Speed records==
On 12 December 1997, the MLX01 clocked a speed of 531 km/h (330 mph), a world record; in doing so, the MLX01 also broke the 517 km/h (321 mph) record set by the unmanned ML500 in December 1979. The MLX01 would beat its own record on 14 April 1999, with a speed of 552 km/h (343 mph) and setting yet another world record in the process. The MLX01 would beat this record yet again in 2 December 2003, with a three-car set setting a speed of 581 km/h (361 mph). This record would stand until it was broken by the L0 Series Shinkansen in April 2015.
The MLX01 also set various unmanned speed records, with a three-car set recording a speed of 550 km/h (341.8 mph) on 24 December 1997 and a five-car set recording a speed of 548 km/h (340.5 mph) on 18 March 1999. 
The MLX01 also set various world relative passing speed records, where two trains would pass each other. Originally setting a world relative passing speed record of 966 km/h (600 mph) in December 1998, the record was broken the next year, with a new speed of 1,003 km/h (623 mph) in November 1999. This speed record was broken yet again on 16 November 2004, with a new speed of 1,026 km/h (638 mph), which still stands as of 2017.
== Gallery ==
MLX01 RTRI.jpg|MLX01-3 at the Railway Technical Research Institute
MLX01-900 Yamanashi.jpg|MLX01-900 series set
==References==
*Wikipedia.org
Category:Maglev trainsets
Category:Electric trainsets
Category:Experimental locomotives
Category:JR Group trains
Category:Mitsubishi locomotives
Category:Nippon Sharyo locomotives