The name Dodge conjures up an image of strong, reliable and purposeful cars from the 1950s, 60s and 70s. But, the history of the company, its models and the 2 brothers behind it is greater than the sum of its parts.
The Dodge Brothers, John and Horace, began their empire in a small machine shop in Detroit, Michigan. Originally, the two brothers began making bicycle parts before ever getting involved in the fledgeling automotive industry springing up around the city and surrounding area.
They had worked closely with Henry Ford (in fact, the brothers for a time held high-up positions within the Ford Motor Company) by lending their manufacturing knowledge, business know-how and investment into the very early days of Ford (they also had done engineering and machining work at the early stages of the Oldsmobile company). What they learned while producing all manner of components for the unprecedented production run of the Model T, would set them on the way to creating a car company the likes of which the world had never seen.
Early automobiles of the time were notoriously fragile, dangerous and rather unrefined. The Dodge Brothers set out to change all of that. It’s remarked on that Dodge actually gave the world the word ”Dependability” because of how rugged the engineering behind their own cars was, but also because they didn’t shake their passengers into oblivion across the mostly dirt roads of early 20th century America. And, they didn’t break the bank…
Dodge would also be a pioneer in the use of 12-volt electrics as standard in cars, something that wouldn’t truly catch on industry-wide for another 50-60 years afterwards. The sheer ruggedness of the Dodge Brothers’ cars saw them scattered to the most far-flung reaches of the known world, all four corners of the earth had a Dodge somewhere.
The DA broke cover in 1929, under its official name the DA Six. The car would come 9 years after the unfortunate passing of its founding brothers but carried their legendary name and their approach to rugged yet refined engineering. One of the greatest refinements pioneered on the DA’s was the use of rubber engine mounts, which stopped the harsh vibrations from the 6-cylinder engine and 3-speed gearbox being transmitted through the frame and into the cabin of the car. Not only for comfort but to stop anything from rattling itself loose and to top it all off, the DA’s were fitted with hydraulically controlled drum brakes on all 4 corners of the car. A first for an American-built car up until that point.
Our particular 1929 Dodge Brothers DA Phaeton/Tourer has spent some of its 97-year life in South Africa. The car was in the care of collector John Ryall who used this incredible patina’d pre-war tourer, it was used on rallies and tours across the country and kept stored away safely when not in use. We then acquired the car before having it loaded up inside of a shipping container and sent it all the way to us here in England. Our workshop team could not believe just how good of a condition this classic Dodge was in!
And that is how our part of the story begins with the stunning dark blue 1929 Dodge DA. We’re currently awaiting its UK registration and it is up for sale right now on our classic car sales platform, MyClassics!
If you want to read another absolutely incredible and heartfelt story of a couple’s love story with a one-family owned, 1927 Dodge then click here to read the wonderful story from Motorious which inspired us to write the history of our 1929 Dodge Brothers DA.
