KiHa 281 series

The KiHa 281 series, branded the Furico 281, is a tilting Japanese limited express diesel multiple unit operated by the Hokkaido Railway Company from March 1994 to October 2022.
==History==
Built from 1992 to 1994 by Fuji Heavy Industries (now known as Subaru Corporation) and Nippon Sharyo, the KiHa 281 series was the first tilting train that was used by JR Hokkaido.
Originally branded the HEAT 281 (Hokkaido Experimental Advanced Train), two pre-production cars were delivered to JR Hokkaido from Fuji Heavy Industries in January 1992 for testing and evaluation; a third pre-production car, an intermediate car, was later delivered in October 1992 to form a three-car consist.
Full-production sets entered service on 1 March 1994 with the introduction of the revised timetable. The tilting abilities of the cars allowed them to maintain high speeds around curves and shave off 30 minutes of travel time off the Hokuto services operated by the older KiHa 183 series sets. The trains retained the HEAT 281 moniker, but the full form of the acronym was changed to Hokkaido Express Advanced Train, along with a larger, revised logo; the designation was changed to Furico 281 at a later date to match the style as seen on the newer KiHa 283 series sets.
The sets were retired from regular service on 30 September 2022; after a series of special chartered services the last KiHa 281 series run took place on 23 October 2022. For these final runs, the trains's Furico 281 logos were removed and replaced with the original HEAT 281 logo. Some cars remained on JR Hokkaido's fleet roster until May 2023.
Due to its outstanding functional and design features, it was awarded the 1995 Laurel Prize.
==Design==
The cars have a modern streamlined style which would later be adopted by later limited express diesel multiple units ordered by JR Hokkaido, such as the KiHa 283 and KiHa 261 series.
==Specifications==
Each car is 21.3 meters long and 4.077 meters tall. The cars all use N-DMF11HZD prime movers which produce 355 hp (265 kW) each. The sets have a bearing-guide tilting mechanism which allows them to tilt up to five degrees around curves.
The pre-production cars tested two types of tilting mechanisms that were to be used for the upcoming sets. The two pre-production cab cars, KiHa 281-901 and KiHa 281-902, used a roller-tilt mechanism, while the pre-production intermediate car, KiHa 280-901, used a bearing-guide tilting mechanism. Both tilting mechanisms were tested in the cold region of Hokkaido; the bearing-guide mechanism was found to be superior and was used for all production KiHa 281 series cars.
==Preservation==
The following KiHa 281 series cars have been preserved:
Car number 	Manufacturer 	Date manufactured	Date retired	Previous sets	Location 	Notes
KiHa 281-901	Nippon Sharyo	January 1992 	May 2023 	N/A 	Naebo Works, Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan	Ex-prototype set, displayed under shelter; viewing possible on depot open days
==Gallery==
File:KiHa 281 Hakodate 2017.jpg|A KiHa 281 series set in July 2017
==References==
*Wikipedia.org
Category:JR Group trains
Category:Diesel trainsets
Category:Tilting trainsets
Category:Fuji Heavy Industries locomotives
Category:Nippon Sharyo locomotives