Key takeaways
- Class 408 is the ICE 3neo – the newest build in the ICE 3 family, based on the Velaro platform.
- No lounge: like the 407, it has a closed wall behind the driver's cab.
- Everyday identification aid: modern external displays, new door design and bike pictograms.
- 320 km/h and multi-system capability – designed for high-speed lines and system boundaries.
- The fleet is growing, because procurement runs in several batches – numbers and deployment areas keep changing.
Contents
Fact file
| Vehicle type | Multi-system high-speed multiple unit with distributed traction |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Siemens (Velaro platform) |
| Type designation | ICE 3neo, manufacturer designation Velaro MS |
| Train formation | eight coaches, all with passenger space |
| Maximum speed | 320 km/h |
| Electrification systems | multi-system for AC and DC networks |
| Special feature | newest build in the ICE 3 family, fitted with bike spaces |
| UIC type code | 93 (high-speed multiple unit) |
| Numbering scheme | vehicle numbers start with 408 |
| Typical use | ICE long-distance services, domestic and cross-border |
Identifying features
Is this really the class in front of you?
- Basic shape like the ICE 3, but a visibly newer design of doors, displays and details
- No lounge behind the driver's cab – as on Class 407
- External digital displays instead of classic destination boards
- Bike spaces on board, recognisable outside by the corresponding pictograms
- Extensive roof equipment with several pantographs
- Vehicle number starts with 408
Updated: August 2026 – You know the shape, not the details: Class 408, marketed as the ICE 3neo, is the newest build in the ICE 3 family. It continues the multiple-unit concept with distributed traction, but differs noticeably from the 403, 406 and 407 in fittings and appearance. This page shows you how to recognise it.
Spotted an ICE 3neo? Log the number.
With a fleet that's still growing, early sightings are especially interesting – capture them with Traintrack.
What is Class 408 (ICE 3neo)?
Class 408 is an eight-part high-speed multiple unit with distributed traction, built by Siemens Mobility on the Velaro platform and marketed as the ICE 3neo. It’s multi-system, meaning equipped to operate under different electrification systems, and approved for 320 km/h.
That places it directly in line behind Class 403 and Class 407. The basic principle is unchanged: no power car, traction distributed under the floor across the train, all eight coaches with passenger space. What’s new is above all the fittings and the detail solutions – doors, external displays, interior concept and bike spaces. In the European high-speed market, this platform competes among others with vehicles from Hitachi Rail.
As with all ICE classes, the twelve-digit vehicle number starts with the UIC type code 93 for high-speed multiple units. The full structure of this number is covered in the article on the UIC number and its check digit.
The fastest route to identification
Check the cab area
Closed wall behind the windscreen? Then you're looking at the Velaro generation – 407 or 408. Only 403 and 406 have the lounge with a view of the line.
Look at the displays
Digital external displays instead of classic destination boards point to the newer build. This detail is recognisable even from medium distance.
Look for pictograms
Signs indicating bike spaces on the coaches are a feature of the ICE 3neo. You won't find these on the older ICE 3 builds.
Read the number
408 instead of 407 or 403. This is the one observation that always holds up – fitting details can change over time.
Where the numbers are shown on the vehicle is explained by the guide Finding the train number.
Two questions are enough
Question 1: can you sit behind the driver's cab? No → 407 or 408. Question 2: do the doors and displays look modern, are there bike pictograms? Yes → 408. That's all you need to narrow it down, and the number confirms it after that.
Placing it in the ICE family
| Class | Build | Lounge | Bikes | Maximum speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 403 | classic ICE 3 | yes | no | 330 km/h |
| 406 | classic ICE 3, multi-system | yes | no | 330 km/h (design) |
| 407 | Velaro D | no | no | 320 km/h |
| 408 | ICE 3neo | no | yes | 320 km/h |
| 412 | ICE 4 | no | yes | 250 to 265 km/h depending on variant |
The table shows clearly why the ICE 3neo and the ICE 4 of Class 412 are procured alongside each other: one is the fast vehicle for high-speed lines and system boundaries, the other the high-capacity backbone for domestic services. A full comparison of all the generations is in the article ICE classes 1 to 4.
New class, fresh sightings
With a growing fleet, it's worth logging every number – it helps document the fleet as it arrives.
Spotting: what matters with a growing fleet
For a class whose numbers are still growing, documenting the individual vehicle number is unusually valuable. Every new unit turns up for the first time in regular service at some point, and anyone who records that has information later that appears in no statistics.
In practice that means:
- Always note the number. “Saw an ICE 3neo” loses exactly the information that matters.
- Add the date and place. Only the combination makes the sighting traceable.
- A record shot is enough. It doesn’t need to be a work of art; a photo where the number is legible is enough for documentation.
How to keep something like this so it can be analysed is shown in the guide on keeping a sightings log. Suitable locations can be found via the overview of the best stations for trainspotting in Germany.
Suction effect: no small matter at 320 km/h
A high-speed train passing through first pushes air ahead of it and immediately afterwards creates a strong suction towards the track. That's enough to knock people off balance, move prams and pull away tripods or bags. Stay firmly behind the safety line, step further back for announced non-stop passages, and secure your equipment. The rules are in the guide on safe distance from the track. Tracks, operational railway land and stabling sidings are never a permitted location.
Why the ICE 3neo is procured alongside the ICE 4
At first glance it seems contradictory to procure two long-distance generations in parallel. In fact they solve two different tasks.
The ICE 4 is the capacity vehicle: long trains, many seats, designed for a network where the line speed limit is rarely above 250 km/h anyway. The ICE 3neo is the speed and border vehicle: shorter, faster, multi-system. It plays to its strengths where high-speed lines exist, or where the electrification system and train protection change at a border.
Both roles need different technology:
- Multi-system capability requires additional pantographs, power electronics for AC and DC, and several train protection systems on board. That costs weight and space – effort that only pays off for cross-border services.
- High top speed requires aerodynamics and traction power that’s barely used in domestic services on existing lines.
- Large capacity requires train length, which can in turn be a hindrance on short platforms and at system boundaries.
For spotters that’s a useful search heuristic: where high-speed lines and cross-border services meet, the likelihood of a 408 rises. Conversely: on classic existing lines with high demand, you’re more likely to encounter long Class 412 trains.
Photo tips for the ICE 3neo
The white, flat front is demanding to photograph. These four points help most:
- Three-quarter view. About 30 to 45 degrees to the vehicle axis gives the flat nose depth.
- Side section with displays. A shot where the external display is legible also documents the build.
- Expose tightly. You can’t recover blown-out white afterwards.
- Fast shutter speed. 1/1000 s is the lower starting point for passing trains.
Basics on this are in the guide taking good photos of trains.
Common mix-ups
It points to Class 408 if …
- the area behind the driver's cab is closed off
- the train carries digital external displays
- pictograms indicate bike spaces
- the number starts with 408
Look more closely if …
- you're torn between 407 and 408 – the basic shape is similar
- you only see the train from the front
- the displays are switched off or illegible
It isn't a 408 if …
- passengers sit behind the windscreen – then it's 403 or 406
- the train has windowless power cars – then it's ICE 1 or ICE 2
- the train is very long with a blunt front – then it's ICE 4
Conclusion
The ICE 3neo continues the line of ICE 3 and Velaro D, but brings enough of its own details to be reliably recognisable in the field. The closed-off cab area places it with Class 407; the modern displays and bike spaces set it apart. Because the fleet keeps growing, numbers and deployment areas are especially rewarding things to document here – and information that goes out of date especially fast if you only pull it from old lists.
In brief
ICE 3 shape, no lounge, modern external displays and bike spaces: that's Class 408. Note the number, not just the class – with a growing fleet, that's exactly the interesting information.
Track the arrival of Class 408
Sightings with number, date and place in one place – that's how a real archive builds up over time.
Summary
- Class 408 is the ICE 3neo and thus the most recent expression of the ICE 3 concept.
- It shares the basic concept with 403, 406 and 407, but differs noticeably in fittings and details.
- Without a lounge, with modern external displays and bike spaces, it's easy to place in the field.
- Because the fleet is still growing, numbers and deployment areas are only a snapshot.
Frequently asked questions
What is Class 408?
Class 408 is the ICE 3neo, the newest build within the ICE 3 family. Like Class 407, it comes from Siemens's Velaro platform, has eight coaches, is multi-system and approved for 320 km/h. Operationally it runs as an ICE.
How do I tell Class 408 and 407 apart?
Neither has a lounge behind the driver's cab, and the basic shape is similar. You can recognise the 408 by its more modern details: external displays instead of classic destination boards, revised door design, pictograms for bike spaces. The vehicle number on the coach body settles it for certain.
Can you take bikes on the ICE 3neo?
Class 408 has bike spaces – one of the innovations compared with the older ICE 3 builds. Whether and how these spaces can be booked on a specific service depends on the current offer and changes, so always check what's current.
How fast does the ICE 3neo go?
The maximum speed is 320 km/h. That's only reached on suitably built high-speed lines; in cross-border services, national approval and the train protection system also limit the speed.
Is the ICE 3neo a new ICE 3 or its own vehicle?
Both are true. It continues the ICE 3 concept with distributed traction and eight coaches, but it's a newly developed vehicle on the Velaro platform with its own class number. For spotters it's therefore a distinct class, even though the timetable just says ICE.
How many Class 408 trains are there?
Procurement runs in several batches, and the fleet keeps growing. Giving a fixed number would therefore be misleading – it would be out of date within a short time. It's more reliable to look at current sightings and official announcements.
How do I recognise an ICE 3neo from the side?
By the combination of the ICE 3 basic shape and modern details: digital external displays, revised doors and the pictograms on the coaches. Add to that the extensive roof equipment of a multi-system vehicle. The number on the coach body confirms it.
What does the 93 in the vehicle number mean?
93 is the UIC type code for high-speed multiple units and appears in the first two digits of the twelve-digit vehicle number. It applies equally to all ICE classes and so doesn't distinguish between them – that's what the class number is for.
Log your sighting of the DB Class 408 (ICE 3)
Date, location and vehicle number logged in seconds – and visible to the community.
Related classes
DB Class 407 (ICE 3)
Class 407 is the Siemens Velaro D: a multi-system ICE 3 of the second design generation – without the lounge behind the driver's cab and with its own nose shape.
High-speedDB Class 403 (ICE 3)
The ICE 3 of Class 403 is the first ICE without power cars: eight coaches, distributed underfloor traction, 330 km/h and the lounge with a view ahead. Here's how to recognise it.
High-speedDB Class 412 (ICE 4)
The Class 412 is the ICE 4: a multiple unit with powered powercars that runs to seven, twelve or thirteen cars depending on the variant. Here's how to identify it reliably.
High-speedAlstom Coradia Max
Coradia Max is the product designation under which Alstom markets double-deck vehicles. In service, what counts isn't this name but the German class number on the vehicle.
High-speedClass 401 (ICE 1)
The ICE 1 is the first ICE generation: two Class 401 power cars, up to twelve intermediate cars in between, and a restaurant car with a raised roof. Here's how to spot it.
High-speedClass 402 (ICE 2)
The ICE 2 is the half-train among the ICE family: a Class 402 power car at the front, a driving trailer with a nose flap at the rear. Two half-trains can be coupled and split en route.
Who is behind it
Groups, brands, manufacturers and operators – who owns whom and how to recognise them out in the field.
Hitachi Rail
Hitachi Rail is the arm of a Japanese industrial group that entered Europe via two traditional Italian firms. Since then, high-speed trains, double-deck regional multiple units and signalling technology have emerged under one roof – only the name Hitachi almost never appears on the vehicle.
ManufacturerSiemens Mobility
Siemens Mobility doesn't build individual vehicles, it builds platforms: a Vectron in Sweden and one in Slovenia are the same machine with different equipment. Anyone who understands the platform logic can recognise the vehicles even when the livery gives nothing away.
Where to see the DB Class 408 (ICE 3)
Specific viewpoints with lighting times, coordinates and an honest verdict on whether the trip is worth it.
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