Most units were withdrawn and scrapped following electrification of the route in 1986. However, two complete units, Class 201 (6S) No. 1001 and
Class 202 (6L) No. 1013, were preserved by Hastings Diesels Ltd., which is based at
St Leonards-on-Sea. Vehicle no. 60000 has been named
Hastings after the town which it previously worked to. This was mainline operational from the unit's revival in 1996 to 2006, but this motor coach was not prioritised when it needed fitting with Central Door Locking (CDL) &
On-Train Monitoring Recorders (OTMR). 60000 also needed an overhaul to its bodywork and because of the costs involved, both financial and manpower, this work has not been carried out yet, which means it is currently in storage at St Leonards Depot. The two mainline certified motor coaches that are currently in use on the Hastings Diesel and are fitted with CDL and OTMR are 60119 (certified in 2023) and 60118
Tunbridge Wells (certified in 1996). The unit operates several
mainline railtours a year, starting from Hastings and going to various destinations; mainly across the South of England, but sometimes further afield. Additionally, the unit has been used in some unusual non-passenger workings. In July 2015, a crash-damaged
Southeastern Class 375 Electrostar EMU was dragged very slowly at by HDL's 2 motor coaches from
Canterbury West to Ramsgate Depot using a special Dellner coupling-adapter, having collided into a herd of cattle that had strayed onto the line between
Wye and
Chilham. In August 2015, the 2 motor coaches spent a week at
Thameslink's new depot in
Three Bridges shunting some of the new-built
Class 700 Desiro City trains. One other vehicle survives, the former buffet car 60750, the only survivor of the Hither Green crash. It was taken into BR's Research division as RDB 975386 and heavily modified to test the tilt and suspension systems for the
APT-P. Previously under restoration at the
Electric Railway Museum, it moved to Shackerstone on the
Battlefield Line in 2017. == See also ==