A listing of Taiwan limited release Plarail.

Most of the text on the boxes is in Traditional Chinese. In most cases the characters are the same as those used in Japan, but there are some differences between Japanese (Kanji) and the Chinese (Hanzi) characters used in Taiwan. Simplified Japanese kana (Hiragana – ひらがな, and Katakana – カタカナ) are generally not used except for the logos – e.g. Plarail プラレール. One obvious difference is that on Japanese boxes ‘set’ is セット - ‘setto’, whereas on these it is 組 – ‘zǔ’.

Most boxes carry an English name and a Taiwan Chinese name, but in many examples one is not a translation of the other. Sometimes the Taiwanese name on one product can be the same as the English name on a different product, which can make things a bit confusing. So for each one I have given three names, the English, the Chinese characters, and a translation of the Chinese into English.

Items are listed in chronological order of release. A few items might possibly have been released one or two months earlier than the dates given, but I think they are pretty much correct.

Five different trains are represented, these will be described very briefly as they appear in the list.

(no English name)
TW-01 700T 台灣高鐵列車
TW-01 700T Taiwan High Speed Rail Train
Release date: June 2007.

The Taiwan High Speed Rail (THSR) 700T is based on the 700 Series Shinkansen, with the "T" referring to Taiwan. The trains were manufactured in Japan by Kawasaki, Nippon Sharyo, and Hitachi, and were the first Japanese Shinkansen trains to be exported. The TSHR came into service on January 5th 2007 and is still in service.

The numbering suggests that Tomy were planning a TW-series of Taiwanese models, but TW-01 is as far as it ever got. The Plarail 700 srs Shinkansen of the same era is shown for comparison.

TAIWAN 700T BASIC SET
台灣高鐵基本組
Taiwan High Speed Rail Basic Set
Release date: June 2007.

It’s certainly ‘basic’; just the lead and middle cars, a small oval, a few trees and a signal. Nice palm trees though.

TAIWAN 700T SUPER SET
台灣高鐵超級火車組
Taiwan High Speed Rail Super Train Set
Release date: June 2007.

The Pla-kids are the same as those in the 500 Series Basic Set (2003).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bb4ScPLpsNY

700T DX STARTER SET
台灣高鐵超級服勤員火車組
Taiwan High Speed Rail Super Attendant Train Set
Release date: November 2009.

Another 700T set, this one with the same layout as the N700 Series Basic Set (2007). The Pla-kid is the Attendant from the Chinese name of the set.

700T DX STATION SET
高鐵環島旅遊組
High-Speed Rail Round-The-Island Tour Set
Release date: November 2009.

A combined Plarail / Tomica package, with Plarail branding on one side of the box and Tomica branding on the other. You get a Tomica Mitsubishi Aero Queen THSR shuttle bus and a female Pla-kid attendant in the same uniform as the one in the DX Starter Set.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rswg-2CtXPc

TAROKO SUPER SET
台鐵太魯閣號超級組
Taiwan Railway Taroko Super Set
Release date: August 2011, re-issued April 2013.

The Taroko Express is a TEMU1000 tilting EMU. It is based on the JR Kyushu 885 (White Sonic etc.) and came into service in 2007.

This has the same layout as the Taiwan 700T Super Set, but with just one Pla-kid this time.

There are two different boxes. The original 2011 set contains a train conductor Pla-kid that’s almost the same as the one that comes with the J-27 Pla-kids crossing except that he has gold buttons, not yellow. The 2013 re-issue contains a re-purposed Mr Magoguchi, the 30-year working veteran driver of the S-53 C57 Unit 1 SL Yamaguchi.

https://youtu.be/0MJy_61GLoU

Thanks to Zhu Junbin, admin of the Tomy Plarail(Taiwan) Facebook group, for helping me establish the release date of the re-issue.

THSRC TOMICA ROTARY STATION SET
台灣高鐵自動車站組
Taiwan High Speed Rail Automatic Station Set
Release date: October 2012.

This is based on the E5 Hayabusa & Tomica Rotary Station Set (2011).

Takara Tomy video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4U5b0znlElo

THSRC CREATIVITY SET
台灣高鐵百變火車組
Taiwan High Speed Rail Variety Train Set
Release date: January 2013.

This is a re-box of the Basic Rail Set (2009), but with an added THSR 700T and a different station.

THSRC STARTER SET
台灣高鐵基本組
Taiwan High Speed Rail Basic Set
April 2013.

This has the same Chinese name as the 2007 Taiwan 700T Basic Set. It’s another 2-car offering, but with the front and rear cars this time.

TAROKO STARTER SET
台鐵太魯閣號基本組
Taiwan Railway Taroko Basic Set
Release date: April 2013.

Another 2-car set.

TEMU1000 & TEMU2000 (but only on the back of the box)
台灣鐵路系列太魯閣普悠瑪列車組
Taiwan Railway Series Taroko and Puyuma Train Set
Release date: November 2013

The Puyuma Express is another Japan-built tilting train this one is called the TEMU2000. It came into service in 2013. Four different Puyuma sets were released at the same time.

PUYUMA STARTER SET
普悠瑪基本組
Puyuma Basic Set
Release date: November 2013

2-car train.

PUYUMA BASIC SET
普悠瑪平交道組
Puyuma Level Crossing Set
Release date: November 2013

The layout is the same as Plarail Rail Set B (c.1995).

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Here’s a link to an early Suzukawa video

PUYUMA DX SET
普悠瑪超級變化組
Puyuma Super Change Set
Release date: November 2013

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U2ACVFAtYgA

THSR NEW BASIC SET
台灣高鐵樂趣列車組
Taiwan High Speed Rail Fun Train Set
Release date: December 2016

Yet another 2-car version of the THSR 700T.

THSR DX CREATIVITY SET
台灣高鐵創意軌道組
Taiwan High Speed Rail Creative Track Set
Release date: December 2016

A rather diminished offering when compared with the 2013 THSRC Creativity Set, not really DX at all.

HELLO KITTY TAROKO SUPER SET
新太魯閣 Hello Kitty號超級組
New Taroko Hello Kitty Super Set
Release date: January 2017

The Hello Kitty-themed Taroko Express made its inaugural run on March 21, 2016. The train was installed with a total of 376 Hello Kitty headrest covers, but when the train had finished its round trip from Taipei to Taitung, all but 48 of them had disappeared! - as gleefully reported by the mainland China press

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c8HbiYji9R4

TAOYUAN METRO CREATIVITY SET
機捷百變創意軌道組 < 直達車
Quick And Easy Variety Creative Track Set – Direct Train
Release date: December 2018.

The Taoyuan MRT connects Taipei and Taoyuan Airport. The line opened in March 2017. This train with the purple livery is the 2000-type which operates the "Direct Train" express service.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g3bz5lC2Wes

TAOYUAN METRO BASIC SET
機場捷運樂趣組 < 普通車
Airport MRT Fun Set – Ordinary Train
Release date: January 2019

This train with the blue livery is the 1000-type with more seats than the 2000-type. It operates the "Ordinary Train" commuter service which stops at all stations on the line, as shown by the schematic on the back of the box.

The layout is again the same as Rail Set B, but the level crossing is moulded in yellow.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NeeerZy53ZM

SUPER SPEED THSR SET
超スピード THSRセット
Super-Speed THSR Set
台灣高鐵自動變速車組
Taiwan High Speed Train Set
Release date: June 2019

Taiwan version of the Super Speed Doctor Yellow set (March 2018), this one has a name in Japanese, as well as the English, and Chinese. Note that the THSR 700T is a new model using the rear-switch motor chassis.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X82r7ISHSbE

TAOYUAN METRO TWIN SET
桃園捷運雙列車組
Taoyuan MRT Double Train Set
Release date: December 2019

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0w5zxZFh6bA

KANAHEI’S SMALL ANIMALS 700T STARTER SET
卡娜赫拉高鐵列車組
Kanahei High-Speed Rail Train Set
Release date: October 2021

Kanahei’s animals are apparently ‘Digital Stickers’, like next-level emojis, and popular with young girls in Japan, Taiwan, and elsewhere. The Kanahei THSR 700T made its first trip on 14th November 2019, dripping with merchandise of course.

The Pla-kid from the 2009 700T DX Starter Set has re-appeared. He’s aged well.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SkCBb1lyq8E

That's all, folks.

EDIT: 2022/23 update here