A total of 161 examples of this locomotive were built for two North American railroads: Conrail and Norfolk Southern Railway.

[citation needed] The C39-8 is powered by a 3,900 horsepower (2,900 kW) V16 7FDL-16 diesel engine driving a GE GMC187A2 main alternator.

The power generated by the main alternator drove 6 GE 752AG traction motors, each with a gear ratio of 83:20 and connected to 40-inch (1,016 mm) wheels which allowed the C39-8 a maximum speed of 70 mph (110 km/h).

Like most North American diesel locomotives, the C39-8 uses normal water for cooling.

[2] 15 Norfolk Southern units were sold to Peru's Ferrocarril Central Andino (FCCA) after RDC acquired a significant part of the company in 1999.