Here’s one for you lovers of old cars. Not the 1980s kind of old or even 1970s old. Heck, not even the 1930s old, this one is a 1927 Dodge Coupe and it’s a beauty. It’s posted on Craigslist in Bemidji, Minnesota with an asking price of $5,900 and it looks great to me. Can you identify the exact series and model of this one?
I’ve been scouring my “The Dodge Story” book (do any of you have those McPherson books?), and even the glorious internet, and I can’t seem to be able to nail down the exact Series and model of this car, and it’s killing me. I think this would be considered a “business coupe” because of the huge, full-length trunk as opposed to the smaller trunks, and due to some period literature that I ran across. It would be nice to have the VIN, but I believe that this is an early 1927 Series 126. Series 124 cars started later in 1927 and Series 124 business coupes didn’t appear to offer blue as a color choice. Dodge offered blue for its business coupes only on the January through April cars. Does anyone have an idea as to the exact model of this car? Is this an early-1927 Series 126 with its original hue, or a later-1927 Series 124 that was repainted a non-factory blue? Of course, that’s just a start, because then there were three models of each Series: Standard, Special, and DeLuxe. I’m sticking with an early-1927 Series 126 because of the blue, but it could have a non-factory paint color repaint. Confusing.
Whatever the heck model and series it is, this is one great looking car. I’m a huge fan of disc wheels so I’d want to source a set of those, but these painted, wood spoke wheels look good and hopefully they’re structurally sound. You can see that the spare tire is missing from the rear carrier, you’ll want to get one to complete the look for sure. The seller says that this car has “good rubber” so at least four of the tires are in good shape. For 1927, Dodge upped the ante by providing a jack, speedometer, electric horn, an ammeter, a theft-proof lock on the transmission, a rear tire carrier, rear view mirror, headlight dimmer, bumpers, and a complete tool kit as standard equipment!
Apparently, Dodge offered only one blue in their business coupe in 1927, “Gendarme Blue”, and the blue on this car seems like it’s a bit bright and/or light to me to be a factory color? It looks like a similar blue to a 1929 Chevrolet 1-ton pickup that I lost out on a few weeks ago when someone hit the buy-it-now button, a mistake that I’ll never make again. Dodge would have had “Dodge Blue” with the classic black fenders on most of their models, along with several other colors available. In 1927 these cars came with white gauges with black numbers so if you don’t see that you’re looking at a 1926 or earlier car. Unless someone changed their gauges.. sneaky, sneaky.. There isn’t much to see on the interior and since this is the only photo it’s all there is to see. But, things look crisp, clean, and tidy and in great condition. The carpet obviously isn’t factory but it’s probably a nice thing to have, especially with the sandy/dirt area where this car resides. Here’s what a lot of these interiors look like so this one is pretty special. This price is looking better and better.
Dodge offered this 212 cubic-inch inline-four with around 24 hp for a few years. The seller says that this one “runs and drives” and this car has been in storage for years, maybe that explains the photos that are dated in previous years. I won’t get any sleep until one of you correctly identifies this car! What do you think of this one? It sure looks clean and nice for the price.
Nice car. If I hadn’t spent money on a new interior for my 66 I would have considered buying this.
It is a fast four, only made in ’27. The cars only came with a spare wheel, not a spare tire, hardly useful. It is also WAY too cheap.
These cars all look the same to me, but you have to admit, that Pontiac Big 6 from a while back is TWICE, or 3 times the car this is. I mean, look at the dash, this was one step up from a Model T, which was a step up from a horse and buggy. The person that drove this in the 30’s, probably worked for the person with the Pontiac. This Dodge is a great find, but seems like peanuts for a car like this. 10 years ago, at auction, I think it would have brought 10 times this amount. It is a limited market, it’s not something you can drive around, like a Chevelle, and maybe the ( relatively) low price reflects that. It really should be trailered to a show, further limiting potential buyers. On the other hand, if you got the cash, it’s a good time to buy a car from this era. Wonderful find, tho.
comparing this dodge is a total insult! this is ten times the car a model t could ever hope to be ! this has hydraulic brakes a open driveshaft and no wood in the body and dodge had 4 wheel brakes years before ford and chev ever offered it the thing here most guys today know little about these great cars and considering the cow paths they called roads back then you were lucky to do 30 mph!
Nice car – still not sold on the colour. My grandfather loved the early Dodges – had a 1917, and later got a new 1926 which he and my grandmother used for their honeymoon car. I’m suspecting they were both touring cars, but never did get around to asking him. He preferred the Dodges and their 12-volt systems, and unlike the contemporary Fords of the era, he didn’t have to spend a lot of time adjusting transmission bands.
When I was born in 1933 my grandparents had a ’27 Dodge sedan. I used to have a photo of it which has long been lost.
A friend of a friend had a late 20’s Dodge touring car in the late 1960’s and I went for a ride in it. High gear, 3rd as I remember it, had a lot of torque at low RPM’s (it did not really have high RPM’s) and we went on a reasonably rough dirt road, at top “cruising speed” of about 30 mph. I was amazed primarily about how solid it was and how well it handled the rough dirt road and how well it pulled up hill and down. Lots of transmission/rear end noise of gears, no synchromesh of course, long pauses between shifts while the driver matched RPM’s with the gear box, lots of dust in the face when we got passed. This one, being a closed car, would not have the dust in the face problem, but unless you have a lot of 30mph roads to drive it on, it is just a show piece. It was A LOT better than a Model T of the same vintage. They were/are relatively flimsy in comparison.
That has to be the brightest blue I have ever seen on a car from this period. Still I like it. It would definitely get some attention on the road ( not all good ) as you putted around the country. We have many country road around here that are still not paved, and I think it would fit right in there. I’d be a little concerned about the brakes as we are at about 3,000 ft elevation, and those roads are steep and windy. Might get the adrenaline up though! Great find.
An earlier model Dodge Bros car, but an interesting video if you haven’t seen it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nq2jY1trxqg
That, sir, is about the best old car video that I have ever seen!
Yep, we’re spoiled by our modern roads and vehicles.
That was absolutely amazing. That was 2 wheel drive, right? How many cars today could do that? That blows my mind.
I have a 27 dodge like yours 2 door . It had no front axle or rear axle. So I put a front axle springs steering out of a 40 Lincoln. Flat heat v8 and transmission. Out of 51 mercury. Rear 8in axle and springs out of a maverick. I have driven it 50mph or over . Factory frame.
Great video
Looks exactly like my 1927chrysler business coupe…6cylinder….interior the same mine is black