Lot details
Registration No: DS 8779
Chassis No: 632932
Mot Expiry: July 2007

Perhaps the quintessential automotive autocrat, Henry Ford's dismissive attitude towards one of his engine suppliers, Messrs John and Horace Dodge, when they had the temerity to suggest a raft of improvements for the Model T so enraged the brothers that they decided to become manufacturers in their own right. Publicising their intention during a party at Detroit's fashionable Book-Cadillac Hotel in Autumn 1914, the larger than life pair supposedly cited "all the Ford owners who will someday want a proper automobile" as motivation. The announcement was made all the more memorable by John Dodge's subsequent inebriated tabletop battle with the banqueting hall's chandeliers. Entering production that November, the 'Dodge Brothers Four' was built around a sturdy, ladder framed, leaf-sprung chassis. Powered by a torquey, monobloc 3.6 litre four-cylinder engine mated to a three-speed manual gearbox, it soon acquired a reputation for speed and dependability. Qualities that were tested to the maximum by the US Army during both General Pershing's punitive 1916 Mexico expedition and World War One. In sales' terms, the Dodge Brothers Motor Company proved a phenomenon and by 1920 was ranked second only to nemesis Ford. A successful update of the legendary 'Four', the Dodge Brothers Series 116 range was introduced in 1922. Available with a choice of up-to-the-minute yet practical Budd all-steel coachwork, the newcomer enhanced the marque's appeal still further.
Finished in blue over black with black upholstery, this particular left-hand drive example is variously described by the vendor as being in "good" (3673cc four-cylinder engine, manual gearbox, electrical equipment, interior trim, wheels / tyres) or "very good" (chassis, bodywork ,paintwork) condition. Reportedly "fully restored" since entering the current ownership some sixteen years ago, it is understood to have seen only light wedding car usage since. Believed but not warranted to have covered 64,092 miles from new, this handsome four-door Vintage Tourer is offered for sale with restoration photos / invoices, workshop / parts manuals and MOT certificate valid until July 2007.

PLEASE NOTE: We have not had this vehicle running.