James and the Diesel Engines is the twenty-eighth book of The Railway Series published in 1984. The four stories focus on James and his distrust for diesels and how he later accepts them.
- Old Stuck-Up: BoCo is showing a visiting Diesel around the line. When the Diesel finds he’s to share a shed with steam engines, he’s disgusted and insults them, leading James to nickname him "Old Stuck-Up". The Diesel sleeps outside the shed, and, when he wakes up the next day, remembers he has to refuel and be cleaned. In the part of the shed where BoCo and Bear sleep is a cleaning stop. The Diesel decides to use it, but goes forward too quickly, slips on the oily rails and crashes into the back of the shed.
- Crossed Lines: The engines are fed up with James' complaining about Diesels having two cabs, and boasting about his importance. He becomes worse than ever when he has to take a goods train one misty day. James has to whistle to alert the signalman to switch the points, but another engine whistles first and the confused signalman switches the points as a wellwagon is going over them, causing it to go sideways into a signal.
- Fire-Engine: During a discussion about paint one night, Henry remarks that he’s thankful he doesn't look like a fire-engine, like James, but James makes a crafty rejoinder and the joke turns on Henry. Henry, furious, broods over paying James out and bangs around so much that the coupling on his tender breaks, the movement knocking part of Henry's fire onto the line. Edward comes to take Henry's train and tells the others. James notes that Henry has never made comments about fire engines since.
- Deep Freeze: One wintry day, James takes on too much water at Crovan's Gate and his injector fails. A Diesel comes to the rescue, and although James feels humiliated at first, he quickly befriends the Diesel and has since never made fun of Diesels.
The book contains examples of:
- Acquired Situational Narcissism: Discussed. Duck mentions of another (real life) engine he knew called King James I, named after an English king, and yet wasn't nearly as conceited as their James. The other engines plead with Duck not to tell James, they don't want his ego getting any worse.
- Artifact Title: Downplayed, "Fire Engine" is the only story unrelated to James' prejudice against diesels.
- Bigotry Exception: James has a distrust for diesels, but is only fond of BoCo and Bear.
- The Bus Came Back: Stephen Topham Hatt, first seen as a boy on holiday with his grandparents, returns as the third Fat Controller.
- Character Development: For James in "Deep Freeze", he grows fond of diesels.
- Chekhov's Boomerang: BoCo's habit of leaking diesel fuel, established in "The Diseasel", comes up again in "Old Stuck-Up", when it results in the titular diesel slipping and crashing into the wall of the shed.
- Complaining About Rescues They Don't Like: James complains about being rescued by a diesel, but soon gets over it.
- Fantastic Racism: James remains the only engine still distrustful towards diesels until the last story.
- Hostile Weather: In "Deep Freeze", it was extremely cold, despite there being little snow.
- Irony: Henry says that he would look like a fire engine if he was painted in James' color. Later on, he has a fire inside his cab after breaking his tender.
- Jerkass:
- D40125. His rude and snobbish attitude earned him the nickname "Old Stuck-Up" from James.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Though James was insulting in Crossed Lines he was a humbler engine in the last story Deep Freeze.
- Laser-Guided Karma:
- "Old Stuck-Up" crashes into the back of the shed after slipping on BoCo's oil slick.
- Also the incident with Henry's fire after his "fire engine" comment above.
- Nice Guy: The Works diesel.
- "The Reason You Suck" Speech: "Old Stuck-Up" gives one to the steam engines.Old Stuck-Up: Why on earth does your controller keep such out of date objects?! Dirty, smokey, slow things! Peh! On our railway, steam engines are kept strictly in their place and are not allowed on the mainline without special permission!
- Shut Up, Hannibal!: In response to the diesel's remarks about steam engines, BoCo gives this to him.BoCo: Stay outside if you're so proud about it! I'm going to join my friends!
- Small Name, Big Ego: James has gotten exceptionally conceited in "Crossed Lines", to the point the other engines are desperate to hear a break from his boasting and elitism against diesels.
- Time Skip: "Crossed Lines" and "Deep Freeze" took place in the former half of 1984. The events of "Old Stuck-Up" could possibly take place in 1973, before the real 40125 was withdrawn from service in May 1981 and scrapped in December 1983. "Fire Engine" took place in 1975.
- Truth in Television: "Old Stuck-Up"'s comment about steam engines needing permission to go on the mainline is a reference to the regulations surrounding steam charters on British Railways.
- Very Loosely Based on a True Story: "Old Stuck-Up" is based on a real event that happened to an A4 Pacific.
- What the Hell, Hero?: While Henry's fireman is sympathetic about his accident, he does point out that had he never banged his engine's tender, it would never have been damaged in the first place.
