At the beginning of the 1980s new tank cars of type Zafns went intol service for China clay transport. China clay comes for example from Cornwall, Brasil and the USA, and is being transported via the big ports and also the channel tunnel into Europe. The prototypes of this car, nicknamed Silver Bullet in Britain, are being used europe-wide, for example on through runs from Rotterdam and Antwerpen through Germany into the East. The cars can be used on ferries, some of them are also certified to run through the channel tunnel, a marking on the car shows this specification. The cars are run by SNCF and hired by different companies. A highlight is the shiny appearance of the cars, a feature that is of course not always visible on cars being in service for a longer period.

Equipped with:

• NEM-coupler pockets
  
• Standard N couplers
  
• Close coupling system
  
• Optional knuckle couplers
  
• Blackened wheels