Still in its experimental golden ochre livery which lasted until late 1965, No.D1015 Western Champion at Exeter St.Davids on 15 July 1964. The livery was proposed by Brian Haresnape as an alternative to the standard British Railways diesel green but was not taken up, with Western Champion remaining the sole example. In 1979, No.D1015 was rescued literally at the final hour before it was due to be cut-up at Swindon by the Diesel Traction Group. It was in appalling condition from and after many years effort and following what amounted to virtually a complete rebuild, Western Champion was restored to main line condition by 2002 and has worked extensively on railtours since then.