Happy Friday, Autopians! Since we’ve been looking at older cars all week, I thought it would be fun to finish up with some really old rides, in as close to original condition as I could find. No hot rods here, not today. I had to raise the price ceiling a fair bit to find these, so the “shitbox” epithet doesn’t really apply, but we’re certainly gonna have a showdown.
Yesterday, we looked at two generations of ’60s Volvos, and I really wasn’t sure how the voting was going to go. I know I would have a hard time deciding between them; they’re both cool cars and both worthy projects. Apparently you all had a hard time deciding, too – as of this writing, just one vote separates the two.
So let’s look at a few pros and cons, and see if we can’t sort this out. Both of them run and drive, so that’s off the table. The 544 looks better from the outside but probably needs a complete front-to-rear rewire. That’s a big job. The Amazon is a more iconic car, and a more pleasing style, to me anyway, but it needs paint badly. On the other hand, it’s $1500 cheaper. Nope, still can’t decide. I guess this one is going to remain a tie.
So let’s move on. I haven’t had the opportunity to drive nearly as many different cars as most people here have; I’ve never had press credentials, so I can’t just ask a manufacturer to borrow a car for a week. I have, however, traveled in some really interesting car circles throughout my driving life, and that has gotten me behind the wheel of a wide variety of vehicles. At this point, there are really only three types of car that are still on my must-drive-someday bucket list: a gated-shift manual Ferrari or Lamborghini, a Citroën 2CV or one of its variants, and an original pre-World War II car of any description. That last one is our focus today, as we look at two fairly typical four-door sedans from nearly a hundred years ago.
1928 Dodge Victory Six – $15,000
Engine/drivetrain: 208 cubic inch flathead inline 6, three-speed manual, RWD
Location: Lancaster, CA
Odometer reading: unknown
Operational status: Runs and drives well
Brothers Horace and John Dodge began building cars in 1914. Their cars were innovative and well-made, and they sold very well. Tragically, both Dodge brothers died in 1921, and their widows sold the company to an investment group. The firm then purchased Graham, a maker of trucks, in 1926, changed the name to Graham-Paige, then sold the whole lot to Chrysler in 1928 – the year this car was built. And you thought changes of ownership for Chrysler brands was a new thing.
The Victory Six was Dodge’s fancy model, a step up from the aptly-named Standard Six. It was a pretty advanced car for the time: It has an all-steel body, and hydraulic drum brakes on all four wheels. It does look like it still uses wooden wheel spokes, however. It’s powered by a flathead inline-six engine making 58 horsepower, driving the rear wheels through a three-speed sliding-mesh gearbox. No synchronizers here; if you can’t find ’em, grind ’em. The seller says it runs very well, and the tires are only about 2 years old.
Minimalism in car interiors is back in vogue, but there’s minimalism and then there’s minimalism. The instrument panel of this Dodge is simplicity itself, with only a few gauges set into a piece of wood that looks like it belongs in a museum. It’s absolutely gorgeous. It reminds me of the polished wood cabinetry aboard the Queen Mary. Even the headliner of this car is a work of art. I mean, look at this.
You see a car like this, and you start thinking the invention of plastic was a really bad idea.
1930 Ford Model A Deluxe – $10,950
Engine/drivetrain: 201 cubic inch flathead inline 4, three-speed manual, RWD
Location: Camas, WA
Odometer reading: unknown
Operational status: “Hop in and drive home”
A bit lower on the price spectrum was Ford’s Model A, a replacement for the long-lived but hopelessly outdated Model T in 1927. It was available in approximately seven hundred thousand bodystyles and configurations, and this one is a Deluxe Fordor Sedan. Under the skin, all Model As were the same, powered by a flathead four-cylinder engine and a three-speed manual gearbox, with three pedals and a gearshift lever in the pattern you would expect, instead of the Model T’s weird configuration. It was one of very few concessions to the market made by Henry Ford; he wouldn’t budge on mechanically-operated brakes, though.
Simplicity was the name of the game for Ford in these days, and automobile engines don’t get much simpler than an inline four with the valves in the block. You can’t really do a four-cylinder four-cycle engine with fewer moving parts than this. It doesn’t even have a fuel pump; the carburetor is gravity-fed from a fuel tank behind the dashboard. The seller says it runs and drives well, and is ready for a new owner to jump in and go.
It’s not perfect, however; it’s an older restoration, and it wasn’t done very well. The interior materials are wrong, and the wood framing of the body isn’t square. The seller says the doors are crooked and need some adjustment to fit properly. But it’s also not as expensive as a perfect restoration would be; this is a car you could enjoy puttering around in on weekends and no one would notice the crooked doors.
Ever wonder why it’s called a “trunk”? Because that’s what it used to be, a literal actual trunk on a bracket bolted to the back of the car.
Well, I hope you all enjoyed reading about these old beauties as much as I enjoyed researching and writing about them. Next week, we’ll be back to more normal fare. But for today, it’s Dodge versus Ford, ninety-some years ago. Who ya got?
(Image credits: Craigslist sellers)
I’ll take the Dodge, mainly because it looks like it has more room for guys in fedoras holding tommy guns.
It would be amazing to do a night out in that Dodge in period costume.
…as long as you can outrun the coppers.
Yeah, 58 elderly horsepower might not be entirely up to the task. I would say Hellcat swap but with tires that narrow you would never get it moving, it would just be burnouts until the wooded spokes caught fire.
Okay you need your autopian membership card revoked. Hellcat in a pre WWI car, so replace motor, transmission, all lines, brakes, glass, tires, suspension, wheels, tires, heck everything cheaper just to build a kit car on a modern Dodge, and better and safer.
I was joking. Not sure if you read the rest of my comment about how it would just burn rubber until the wooden spokes (I mistyped ‘wooden’ as ‘wooded’) caught fire. I would have thought Mr. Sarcastic would have picked up the lack of seriousness there…
Oh I read it got it enjoyed it but as a goof posted taking away your nonexistent membership card for humor. Sorry people don’t get my humor.
Haha. Well glad that is sorted. Sorry for coming back at you.
No problem I wasn’t offended just explaining. Trying to post nicer this year.
“Let’s go pick up some flappers and visit the speakeasy.”
Okay, I can get behind this.
Could we play some Benny Goodman on the radio to get the gals in the mood?
How about Benny Hill?
Benny Goodman came along a lot later. Think Bix Beiderbecke, and Ma Rainey and Bessie Smith.
You dirty rat, you! You made me spit coffee all over my keyboard. Now Mugsy’s gotta clean it all up see
Sooooo much wampa-dampa. I’ll go with the Dodge because it looks like it has been cared for a lot better. As far as reliability goes, you will be tinkering relentlessly with either of these cars. It comes with the territory.
I can’t see buying either of these, though I wouldn’t call them shitboxes. The Ford is pretty nice-looking; I’d probably stop and admire it at a car show.
I dunno, username is boxbody and these are as boxy as they get.
I’ve always thought of myself as a decent wrench, but keeping a pre-war car running is where you need real money or real skill. I have all the respect in the world for folks who are able to keep theirs in running condition for regular use.
As much as we joke about all modern cars being gray blobs, all pre-war cars do look, to my untrained eye, like the same car. So I’ll pick the one with a higher-quality restoration and a little bit of alt energy. Dodge it is!
check out Roadworthy Rescues on Max. He does a few pre-war cars including a Model A. It’s kind of absurd how many parts are still available for it, stuff I can’t even get on my old Acura.
I have basically zero interest in cars from this era, but if I HAD to pick, I think I’d take the Ford. Neither of these are going to be good investments, so might as well start with the cheaper of the two… but in reality, there is a 0% chance that I’d spend almost $11k on that fuckin relic. Just not my jam.
T for me: I kind of want a crusty one I can take on fire roads & in the snow to experience first-hand just how capable they really are. I’m not a complete masochist, though: I’d fit it with a heater. It’s not like there aren’t thousands out there, so some modifications won’t hurt.
I think the Ford actually looks better, but it’s also two years newer and by 1930 Dodges look much different and rivaled or surpassed Ford in appearance. This time I’m ignoring the pretty face for the superior tech and performance. Go Dodge.
The Dodge seems to be in better condition, and it’s more unique than the Model A. So I chose the Victory Six.
I own a WW1 era car and I drive it. Yes it is unsafe, slow, and unreliable. But nothing compares to taking your wife to a restaurant in a 1917 touring car. They will move a Lambo to park you out front. I have taken my car grocery shopping and for errands within 10 miles or so. It makes every trip an experience and you become a one car parade. People honk and wave. Kids love them and everyone wants to talk about it.
I think these particular cars are both slightly overpriced in today’s market. Model As are a dime a dozen due to estate sales so you can get a much nicer one for $10k. I like the Dodge despite the unfortunate paint combination and it is well-engineered so it is likely to be a better experience but parts will be hard to find. Sometimes you have to have them created.
I contend that the only reason to buy one of these is to drive it where you can.
Neither of these cars is a Duesenberg and the prices are going down so investment is out the window.
Car shows and Parades. You will be a hit at a local car show but you won’t be driving out of town much so that might get old. One way to spice it up is cosplay in vintage costumes.
Static display. Either will look nice in your garage but unless you throw a lot of garage parties or you use it to promote a business, it will just be in the way.
Experience. If you want to try out a pre-war car, this is one way to do it. A better idea is to make friends with someone who owns one. Some can be rented on Turo.
While antique car tours are a real thing, you must commit to it as a lifestyle since it usually involves towing to a scenic destination and then driving around for several days. This is actually quite fun in a “Wow, look what I accomplished” kind of way. And you will have some amazing Instagram shots.
This is the best comment! Thanks for sharing, Chronometric!
This is the kind of real-life experience that I look forward to finding at Autopian.
The automobile is a mistake. You urbanites and you’re big city ways. We fine people of rural Missouri don’t need cumbersome city slicker chariot. Just give me a good horse. Ain’t nothing beating a man riding a fine horse, with his male friends, just horsing around.
I need more coffee. I misread that last sentence as “a man beating a fine horse”
Now wondering where the expression “horseplay” comes from.
I own a pre-war car that is NOT a Model A and I can tell you that aftermarket parts support is lacking, and you find yourself using Model A parts to fill in gaps. That Dodge is really pretty, but it costs more and it’ll continue to cost you more forever. I have trouble finding parts for a Chevy so I can only imagine what a lower production Dodge would be like.
My uncle had a Model A. Surprisingly modern drive experience. Yeah you had to double clutch, hand crank start and manually adjust the timing, but the brakes were decent in a wagon sorta way. I got it up to around 45 MPH and that was plenty fast in that thing. A really cool experience.
I vote Model A because I drove one and keeping it running would be easier than the Dodge.
Even for $4000 more, the Dodge is a no-brainer. It’s more interesting and it’s in way better condition. As other comments have pointed out, the Ford is probably easier to find parts for and maintain, but it’s not like we’re talking about anything too exotic with either choice.
Driving a prewar car has always been on my bucket list. It would be more fun to drive a Model T, just because all the controls are different, but I’m not picky. And I’m a sucker for a nice, solid wood dashboard. So, Dodge it is.
Man, this is like chosing between saving the ozone layer and cheese in a spray can.
I went with the Dodge. Sure, it’s $5k more, but if I bought the Ford. Ultimately, I bet it would cost more than that to get it up to the level the Dodge is already at. A poor restoration means lots of stuff has to be undone then redone.
Well, the Dodge is more car for the money, but isn’t really more usable, despite the 6, the two are pretty evenly matched on performance. The Model A is cheaper and would be far easier to keep on the road, you can practically build a complete new one from scratch with the parts availability
I am going with the Ford. I like to drive my cars, so I prefer a car that isn’t perfect. I obviously wouldn’t use either of these as a daily driver, but I could see driving that Ford for some of my normal tasks. The Dodge looks like a show car to me. I like seeing other people’s show cars, but I don’t want to own one. I think I would worry too much about the Dodge to drive and enjoy it.
When I was a teenager working as a grocery store bagger in northern Michigan in the 80s, one of our seasonal customers was veteran character actor Allan Melvin (“Sam the butcher” on “The Brady Bunch,” for instance). He would always roll up in a Model A convertible (maybe a replica?), and always had a handsome tip for the carryout.
In memory of Mr Melvin, we’ll take the Model A. But that Dodge is sweet.
Melvin was also the voice of Magilla Gorilla.
Dodge Brothers or no car.
Have to go with the Ford, even if my grandfather’s first job in Detroit was with “Dodge Borthers” as he’d say. From a purely aesthetic standpoint, I find the louver shape on the Dodge a detraction and the Ford’s hood much more attractive. From a realistic standpoint, though, what makes the Ford a winner for me is that it has all-metal wheels. The Dodge’s wood artillery wheels are pretty but that is one level of technology too early for me to be comfortable with as a driver. But I’d take either one of these if someone wanted to gift it to me. Love this era of car shape.
If the Ford was two years newer, and thus had the flathead V8, it would win every time. But the Model A was a stopgap, made only a couple of years, and as the author noted was compromised by Henry’s BS.
The Dodge is from the days when Dodge was punching way above its weight class. This is why Walter P. wanted to buy it.
Well my dad has a 1933 Dodge Sedan (not original, a mild hotrod) so I guess I better go with that one. Also, the interior of this example looks fantastic.
By1930(ish) the wooden wheels were actually an option on these. Steel wheels had become more standard, although on the upmarket Victory model (or maybe for this one that’s a bit older ) like this they may have been standard.
Also, parts for the dodge are still kind of available although not as much as the Ford. The engine was still generally the same all the way through the ’50s.
The Dodge with artillery wheels looks like an awful nice place to be on a Sunday afternoon.
I know nothing about prewar cars and have little interest in them. I picked the Model A for parts availability.
Oh, this is a tough one. The Dodge is definitely the better of the two cars, but also a lot pricier. Model As are ubiquitous enough that I know you can get parts for them, not sure about the Dodge.
Eh, screw it … DODGE!
I had the same exact logic.
To me it’s a tough choice. My Grandpa knew Henry Ford from a very young age. And worked for Ford in the UP, Mich. until he retired after 20+ years. He owned a ton of the Model A and T cars. Bought his first model A for 10 bucks.
But the Dodge is the better buy here. I believe the cost to get the Ford in a comparable condition would far exceed the cost difference here.
So Dodge it is. Beautiful car.
Yeah, that’s the other thing. By the time you put THAT Model A right, you really should just by a different/better Model A.