The Lionel LCS Sensor Car

I always liked that car.  I wish Lionel had made one in PRR as I would have purchased it.  The initial run was very few road names.  I assumed more would be coming later and they did not.

@Joe Fermani posted:

I always liked that car.  I wish Lionel had made one in PRR as I would have purchased it.  The initial run was very few road names.  I assumed more would be coming later and they did not.

I'm pretty sure the REA was all they produced.  I think once they added sensors to most engines this fell to the side.  A kit might have been a better seller.

I took the standard REA Sensor Car and switched out the body, leaving the bottom frame and trucks.  All you need to do is find an Scale Reefer body and swap out the REA.  I do indeed have a PRR Sensor Car now.

@LionelAG posted:

I took the standard REA Sensor Car and switched out the body, leaving the bottom frame and trucks.  All you need to do is find an Scale Reefer body and swap out the REA.  I do indeed have a PRR Sensor Car now.

I know a few people that have done that.

The Lionel 2026990 Vision Reefer pack was perfect for this conversion with 2 of the 3 cars having no other function.  Fairly simple swap out with a minimal amount of mounting the indicator light and antenna to the new Reefer body.  Works and looks great!

Lionel advertised this to put behind an engine without a sensor.  That is only one possible use.  I envisioned having a sensor car at the end of a train.  An engine with a sensor could trigger a sled to start an "event" and the sensor car at the end of the train could trigger the event to stop.  It would allow for block triggers without using the infared sensors.  Just another possible use.

I'll be honest with you.  It slipped my mind I even had it until I ran the UP844 and couldn't figure out why the whistle wasn't blowing going over the sensor track.  LOL!  Then I remembered.

@Joe Fermani posted:

Lionel advertised this to put behind an engine without a sensor.  That is only one possible use.  I envisioned having a sensor car at the end of a train.  An engine with a sensor could trigger a sled to start an "event" and the sensor car at the end of the train could trigger the event to stop.  It would allow for block triggers without using the infared sensors.  Just another possible use.

When I first got mine I had it triggering recordings of all sorts of events.  I had other engines sounding there horns etc.  I like your thoughts as well but it would probably need to be a semi independent set up maybe?  The lack of more IDs, solved with the Base3, would also hamper this a bit depending on how you address the cars.

I bought a few of the sensor cars when people were selling them for $50-60, I figured they'd be nice to have.

I almost forgot these cars existed. Of course, now that I just got one of the Sensortracks, I can see the advantage of these for the pre 2010 Lionel locomotives. Kind of a shame they didn’t sell well…

@Mikado 4501 posted:

I almost forgot these cars existed. Of course, now that I just got one of the Sensortracks, I can see the advantage of these for the pre 2010 Lionel locomotives. Kind of a shame they didn’t sell well…

It was another case of everyone saying they wanted one and then when produced no one bought them.  I have 2 so I did my part.  LOL!

@MartyE posted:

It was another case of everyone saying they wanted one and then when produced no one bought them.  I have 2 so I did my part.  LOL!

I bought two when they were first released.  When other people decided they didn't need them, I bought a few more on the cheap.

I guess I should have got one.. oh well

I bought a couple and  swapped the shell on one.  In addition to adding sensor action to older Legacy locos, I use them at the end of long freight drags behind locos that have a sensor to trigger an additional crossing whistle (over sensor tracks).

One issue is the sensor car, set to the same engine ID as sensor-equipped loco, becomes the "info" for that engine ID in the Legacy base.  Doesn't impact operations, but I would like to see an engine with the same ID as the sensor override the sensor car info coming from the base.

I found that the sensor car, left in program mode, will change it's ID (Eng, ##, Set) but will still trigger the sensor track actions.  Convenient for playing around and changing IDs for sensor track playbacks.  With show layout operation, I use the sensor cars trigger sounds on trains on different loops.

+1 in a sensor kit.  Perhaps offer the trucks, car floor, and electronics so any shell of the same dimensions could be put on top.  I would like to see the sensor on aux water tenders for older steamers.  Vision cars should a sensor.

@MartyE posted:

I'm pretty sure the REA was all they produced.  I think once they added sensors to most engines this fell to the side.  A kit might have been a better seller.

Lionel offered a non scale refer, which I ordered but they canceled it. I bought the REA refer instead with plans of putting the innards in a non scale car.
Steve

@MartyE posted:

It was another case of everyone saying they wanted one and then when produced no one bought them.  I have 2 so I did my part.  LOL!

I bought one REA car, would have bought more if they had it in different liveries.

@CAPPilot posted:

I bought one REA car, would have bought more if they had it in different liveries.

They should have done at minimal 3 IMO to start.

@MartyE posted:

It was another case of everyone saying they wanted one and then when produced no one bought them.

@MartyE,

Define 'everyone'.  I don't recall it happening this way.

What I saw, and experienced, was slightly different.  As is too often the case something rather sophisticated is proposed and/or introduced without publishing sufficient technical details to describe its true value.  I think that, because of this, most people didn't appreciate the significance of it, and put it out of mind.  They never thought the better of it, until learning about it much later, after it was already pulled from production.

Mike

Truthfully, Lionel has mostly done an abysmal job promoting the LCS system, which is why they're discontinuing LCS stuff right and left.  If all that's left is Fastrack sensor tracks and new Legacy engines with sensor capability, they lose a huge part of the market.  The iPad app hadn't been updated in a long time either.

It’s the same same. A manufacturer announces something a lot of folks asked for. They produce, it and I agree Lionel is poor at promoting LCS items, and then it doesn’t get any traction.

Maybe everyone isn’t the best but a lot of folks were excited about it when announced and then it didn’t sell well. Is that Lionel’s fault, partially but like folks who commit to and engine they all say they’ll buy and then they get blown out.

With a system like LCS, it's going to take some time for it to gain traction, they should have realized that fact.  Also, if you're still going to offer the system, cutting off a bunch of the supporting accessories certainly isn't a recipe for long term success!  The new BASE3 has more support for LCS with it's three outputs, but removing key elements of the LCS infrastructure doesn't help sell that platform either.

Lionel hints at continuing support of LCS and sensors, but Dave Olson's comment that Lionel can't produce the IRV2 because of parts supply issues is concerning.  Does that issue extend to other components of the LCS system?  ASC2s can't be found.  I had to buy Fastrack command switches for a planned "Time Waster" layout due to lack of ASCs to control the non-command switches I have on hand.   Grrrrr.  I hate to think that designing a layout for LCS automation is a doomed effort because of unavailable components.