I've found that checking track connections and wheel cleanliness first solves a surprising number of issues before digging into anything more complicated.

I've had similar issues with rolling stock on tighter curves before. Sometimes even a small adjustment to wheel gauge or coupler height makes a bigger difference than expected. Cleaning the track and checking for tiny uneven spots also helped on my layout.

I've noticed a lot of model train issues end up being something simple like dirty track, wheel pickup, or a loose connection. A quick clean and checking the wiring carefully can save a lot of frustration. Sometimes these locomotives are more sensitive to power issues than people expect.