Mike,
I actually think Dave has done wonders with the limited budgets he may receive. He has SIGNIFICANTLY improved Lionel sound sets, added whistle smoke, bi-color marker lights and things still to come. However Dave also (apparently) made the decision to limit smoke units in the Gensets from 3 to 1, as a cost cutting measure, because Lionel claimed nobody actually noticed the smoke stacks turning on one by one, as the diesels were reved up. Dave may have also made the hard decision to drop die cast bodies in favor of plastic engine bodies, (another cost cutting measure with savings not passed on to consumers) although Engineering does NOT set prices, and may not even be involved in prices except to build as the top brass order, and Dave discovered Lionel had to add weights to the units for performance reasons. Don't mistake my comments for bashing Engineering in any way.
The gensets are just about the next engines to be delivered by Lionel, so we will shortly see how well they fare as compared to the diecast body originals. Personally, I can't wait to receive my Bethlehem Steel Unit!
