1923 Dodge Brothers Series 116 Business Coupe: 116-Inch Wheelbase and Two-Seat Body

The 1923 Dodge Brothers Series 116 Business Coupe used a 116-inch wheelbase and Dodge Brothers' 212.3-cubic-inch L-head four-cylinder engine. Its closed two-passenger body provided weather protection and a useful rear luggage compartment for traveling salesmen, tradesmen, and owners who needed cargo room rather than a rear seat.

Best known for combining Dodge Brothers' durable four-cylinder chassis with a compact closed body, the Business Coupe represents the practical, commercial side of early 1920s American motoring rather than a sporting or luxury derivative. Collectors value it for its distinctive proportions, steel-intensive body construction, sparse two-seat cabin, and direct connection to the engineering formula that built Dodge Brothers' reputation before the company passed through Dillon, Read & Co. and ultimately into Walter Chrysler's control.

Quick Facts

The Series 116 name refers to the chassis wheelbase rather than an engine size or formal performance grade. The following summary separates well-established specifications from measurements and performance claims that are inconsistently reported in surviving literature.

The term Business Coupe describes the body function. Compared with a conventional coupe carrying an occasional rear seat, the business body devoted the space behind its two occupants to samples, luggage, tools, or sales material. That purpose is central to both correct identification and restoration.

Why the Series 116 Business Coupe Matters

Dodge Brothers had built its early reputation on cars that were sturdier and more comprehensively equipped than the least expensive Ford. Electric starting and lighting, a robust chassis, and steel body construction were established Dodge selling points long before the Series 116 arrived. For 1923, the longer 116-inch chassis gave the familiar four-cylinder car revised proportions and more room for a broader selection of bodies.

The Business Coupe also records a commercial pattern that has largely disappeared. A closed two-seat automobile could serve as weekday business transport without adopting the height, noise, or exposed load space of a light truck. Surviving examples therefore illuminate both passenger-car development and the working life of automobiles in the 1920s.

Its collector appeal is not based on racing victories or exceptional speed. It rests on body rarity, early closed-car design, and the survival challenge posed by wood framing, sheet metal, upholstery, and specialized coupe hardware. A complete but weathered Business Coupe can be a more viable restoration than an attractive incomplete car missing its deck fittings, window mechanisms, garnish moldings, or seat structure.

Historical Context and Development

Dodge Brothers after John and Horace Dodge

John Dodge died in January 1920, and Horace Dodge followed in December of the same year. The company continued under professional management while ownership remained with the Dodge estates. Frederick J. Haynes, a long-serving Dodge executive, led the business during much of this transitional period.

The marque still possessed a strong dealer organization and a reputation earned through wartime vehicles, touring cars, and dependable light commercial products. It faced an increasingly aggressive Chevrolet, Ford's enormous production scale, and competition from Buick, Studebaker, Essex, Nash, and other American manufacturers offering more body choices and, in some cases, six-cylinder engines.

The Series 116 did not answer that competition with a new engine architecture. Dodge retained its proven large-displacement four, lengthened the chassis compared with the preceding 114-inch-wheelbase cars, and offered bodies suited to private, professional, and family use. That conservative development program reduced mechanical risk and kept service requirements familiar to dealers.

Design and body construction

The Business Coupe has the upright greenhouse expected of an early 1920s closed car, but its short passenger compartment and long rear deck give it a markedly different profile from the sedan. A vertical radiator shell, separate crowned fenders, running boards, exposed door hinges, and artillery-style wheels define the period. The roof covering, visor, windshield frame, door fit, and deck treatment are particularly influential visually because the body has few decorative distractions.

Dodge Brothers had worked closely with the Edward G. Budd organization in developing steel automobile bodies. The phrase all-steel requires care when discussing unrestored cars, since timber remained relevant in roof structures, interior attachment points, floors, and other body details depending on body construction and production date. A restorer should examine the actual body rather than assume that every structural member is steel.

Competition and intended use

A Ford Model T coupe was cheaper and supported by unmatched parts distribution. Chevrolet's Superior models competed more directly with conventional controls and expanding body choices, while Essex and Studebaker offered alternatives to customers prepared to spend more. Dodge sold durability, equipment, and a more substantial road presence rather than minimum purchase price.

There was no homologation requirement and no factory racing program behind the Business Coupe. Its engineering priorities were low-speed torque, tractable operation, durability on uneven roads, and the ability to carry occupants and business material without stressing the chassis.

Engine and Drivetrain

The Series 116 retained Dodge Brothers' long-serving inline-four. Its 3.875-inch bore and 4.5-inch stroke yield 212.3 cubic inches, unusually generous displacement for four cylinders. The side-valve, or L-head, arrangement places the valves in the block beside the cylinders, operated by a camshaft through tappets rather than overhead rockers.

A single carburetor supplies the engine, with gasoline commonly delivered from the rear tank through the period vacuum-feed arrangement. Surviving cars often carry replacement carburetors, electric fuel pumps, revised vacuum tanks, or altered manifolds, so manufacturer and casting details should be checked against the appropriate parts book and the car's production date.

Period specification summaries commonly list 35 horsepower. This must not be confused with the lower taxable-horsepower figure derived from cylinder bore under the contemporary industry formula. Dodge designed the engine for useful torque at low rotational speed, not sustained high-rpm operation, and factory literature did not publish a modern redline.

Ignition used a distributor and coil within Dodge Brothers' electric starting and lighting system. Lubrication belongs to the low-pressure and splash era, with oil distribution and connecting-rod trough condition requiring careful attention during a rebuild. Cooling relies on a front radiator and belt-driven fan, and internal scale can compromise an apparently complete system.

A mechanically operated clutch sends power to a three-speed selective sliding-gear transmission. From there, a propeller shaft and final drive turn the live rear axle. Synchromesh was not part of the design, so clean changes depend on clutch adjustment, engine-speed matching, and an unhurried hand.

The core drivetrain dimensions are well established, while carburetor suppliers and smaller components can differ with production date and service replacement history.

The engine's generous stroke explains much of the driving character. It responds best to early shifts and measured throttle inputs, while lugging under a heavy load can be just as harmful as excessive engine speed. Correct ignition timing, carburetor adjustment, and unrestricted cooling are more valuable than attempts to make it behave like a later high-compression engine.

Chassis, Suspension, Steering, and Brakes

The body sits on a riveted steel ladder frame with beam axles and semi-elliptic leaf springs. This was conventional practice, but Dodge's sturdy frame and axle construction supported the company's durability claims. Wear at spring pins, shackles, axle pivots, steering joints, and wheel bearings can make an otherwise sound car wander badly.

Steering is by a mechanical steering box without power assistance. Large steering-wheel diameter supplies leverage at parking speed, while narrow tires keep effort manageable once moving. Excess free play should not be dismissed as normal simply because the car is old.

Braking is mechanical and acts at the rear wheels rather than through a later four-wheel hydraulic system. Correct linkage geometry, equal adjustment, sound drum surfaces, and suitable friction material are essential. A Series 116 converted to later brakes may be easier to use in traffic, but the alteration changes both historical character and collector assessment.

This table concentrates on the chassis details that help distinguish an intact Series 116 from a car assembled with later running gear.

The absence of front brakes defines the safe operating envelope. Even when correctly restored, stopping distances and resistance to fade cannot match later four-wheel-brake cars. Engine braking, anticipation, and generous following distance are part of operating the car as designed.

Driving Experience and Road Manners

Starting a properly tuned Series 116 is an exercise in period control rather than drama. Ignition setting, mixture control, fuel supply, and starter technique all matter, particularly after the car has stood. Once warm, the large four should pull cleanly from modest engine speed, accompanied by the distinct individual pulses of a long-stroke engine.

The clutch and unsynchronized transmission reward deliberate movement. First gear gets the car rolling, second handles much of the acceleration, and top gear serves open-road cruising. Double-declutching smooths downshifts, while forcing the lever can damage gears and selector components that are neither inexpensive nor abundant.

At speed, the beam axles and leaf springs communicate road crowns, patched surfaces, and longitudinal ruts directly. Body roll arrives early, but that does not make the car unpredictable when spring shackles, steering joints, tires, and wheel alignment are correct. A loose front end, incorrect toe setting, or mismatched tires can turn the slow steering into constant correction.

The rear-only brakes require the greatest adjustment from a modern driver. Pedal effort is substantial, initial bite modest, and repeated applications generate heat. On roads of 1923, with lower traffic speed and drivers accustomed to planning ahead, this was accepted practice; in mixed modern traffic, route selection matters as much as mechanical condition.

Identification and Originality

Serial numbers and chassis evidence

A 1923 Dodge does not have a modern 17-character VIN. Registration may rely on a chassis serial number, an engine number, or an older state-assigned number, depending on jurisdiction and the car's documentary history. Buyers should compare every visible number with the title, historical registrations, factory-era serial listings, and recognized Dodge Brothers reference material without assuming that engine and chassis numbers were originally identical.

The 116-inch wheelbase is the first physical check for Series 116 identity. It should be measured between axle centers rather than inferred from a title description. Frame construction, engine castings, axle design, controls, body hardware, and wheel equipment should then agree with the production period.

Business Coupe body details

A genuine Business Coupe should retain a two-passenger cabin and business-oriented rear storage arrangement. Converted coupes, reconstructed roadsters with fabricated roofs, and bodies assembled from several donors require close inspection around the roof, rear quarters, deck opening, door apertures, sill structure, and floor.

Original garnish moldings, window regulators, latches, hinges, visor brackets, deck hardware, instrument panel fittings, and seat components can be harder to locate than mechanical service parts. Reproduction running-board covering, wiring, lenses, fasteners, upholstery materials, and some engine components are available, but model-specific closed-body trim often must be repaired or recreated.

Matching numbers, finishes, and documentation

Matching numbers is not as simple a concept here as it is on a postwar performance car. An original engine supported by old paperwork is desirable, but a correct-period replacement installed during the car's working life is common and historically plausible. The crucial point is disclosure and consistency among the engine number, chassis identity, title, and restoration records.

Modern paint-code terminology does not transfer neatly to a 1923 Dodge. Factory literature, period color cards, hidden paint in protected areas, and documented unrestored cars are better guides than generic antique-car color charts. Black fenders and running gear were common period practice, but the complete finish scheme should be researched for the specific body and build period.

Owners should preserve purchase invoices, early registrations, engine-rebuild records, photographs taken before restoration, correspondence with previous owners, and receipts identifying reproduction parts. Documentation can resolve questions that the physical car alone cannot answer after a comprehensive repaint or body reconstruction.

Series 116 Variants and Body Styles

Dodge Brothers sold the Series 116 chassis with several passenger-car bodies. Terminology changed in period advertising and modern catalogues, so body function and seating arrangement are more dependable than an informal label applied decades later.

Exact production totals by Series 116 body style are not consistently documented in commonly available records. Consequently, rarity claims should be based on surviving registries, club research, and documented factory records rather than on unsupported production estimates.

Performance and Dimensional Specifications

Factory and period material for the Series 116 emphasized reliability, hill-climbing ability, and economy more than acceleration testing. Defensible 0-to-60-mph, quarter-mile, and model-specific top-speed figures for the 1923 Business Coupe are not consistently available, so they are omitted rather than reconstructed from later estimates.

Weight figures can differ according to body equipment, cataloguing method, and whether a source reports shipping or road-ready weight. A car being restored or transported should be weighed directly rather than relying on an unverified online figure.

Compared With Related Dodge Brothers Models

Earlier 114-inch-wheelbase Dodge cars

The Series 116 followed Dodge Brothers cars built on the shorter 114-inch wheelbase. The added two inches did not transform the basic drivetrain, but it altered body packaging and proportions. Owners researching a loose frame, driveshaft, body, or running-board assembly must not assume interchangeability merely because the engine family appears familiar.

Other Series 116 bodies

The Touring and Sedan provide rear passenger accommodation, while the Roadster substitutes an open two-seat body. The Business Coupe's fixed roof and cargo-oriented rear compartment make it a materially different restoration proposition. Closed-body wood, glass channels, regulators, roof material, and interior trim add work not encountered on a roadster, while its specialized rear bodywork is less interchangeable than sedan hardware.

Later Dodge Brothers cars

Later 1920s Dodge Brothers models received substantial chassis and powertrain development, including the eventual move beyond the long-serving four-cylinder formula. Four-wheel braking and six-cylinder power altered road behavior and mechanical complexity. A later axle, brake conversion, engine, or wheel assembly fitted to a Series 116 can improve usability, but it should not be represented as factory 1923 equipment.

Ownership and Restoration Notes

Mechanical service

A Series 116 requires frequent inspection by modern standards. Oil level, lubrication points, fan belt, coolant, ignition contacts, wheel bearings, brake linkage, steering joints, spring shackles, and tire condition deserve attention before regular use. Service intervals should follow an original owner's manual or period shop instructions rather than modern annual-maintenance assumptions.

An engine rebuild may require specialist work on poured bearings, crankshaft journals, cylinder bores, valve seats, oil distribution, and the cooling passages. A machine shop experienced only with modern insert-bearing engines may not be suitable. Before disassembly, record bearing clearances, shim arrangements, timing marks, casting numbers, and every oil passage.

The gearbox is simple but not crude. Worn dogs, chipped teeth, bearing play, bent selectors, and clutch drag can produce noise or jumping out of gear. Replacement gears may require used stock, club contacts, or specialist manufacture, making a complete original transmission valuable even when it needs rebuilding.

Body and structure

Water entering around the fabric roof insert, visor, windshield, deck lid, or side glass can remain trapped in sills and lower panels. Inspect door bottoms, hinge pillars, roof perimeter, cowl, rear quarters, floor edges, running-board mounts, and the frame beneath the body. Sagging doors often indicate structural movement rather than a simple hinge adjustment.

Wood replacement demands accurate patterns and repeated trial fitting. If old wood has collapsed or disappeared, the restorer must establish door gaps, roof crown, deck alignment, and body mounting before final sheet-metal work. Finishing the metal first and forcing the structure to fit later is an expensive route to cracked paint and poor closures.

Parts support and authenticity

Routine ignition items, gaskets, wiring, some bearings, tires, lenses, and general restoration supplies can be sourced through antique-car specialists and Dodge Brothers clubs. Business Coupe-specific trim and body hardware are much scarcer. Casting, machining, or fabricating a missing component may cost far more than rebuilding a worn original.

Common modifications include electric fuel pumps, directional signals, alternators, modern temperature gauges, revised lighting, and hydraulic brake conversions. Safety additions can be sensible, but they should be installed reversibly where possible and documented for the next owner.

Buyer and Inspection Points

A useful inspection begins with identity and completeness, not fresh paint or whether the engine starts. The most expensive faults are often hidden in the body structure or represented by missing coupe-only hardware.

A running but incomplete car is not necessarily the better purchase. For this body style, a non-running example with intact trim, sound structural patterns, and coherent documentation may represent less total work than a cosmetically restored car assembled with incorrect hardware.

Collector and Market Relevance

Open touring cars survive in greater visibility because they embody the familiar image of early motoring. The Business Coupe appeals to a narrower group that values commercial history, closed-body architecture, and uncommon coachwork. That narrower audience does not make restoration easier, but it does reward accuracy when two similar cars are compared.

Collectors usually prioritize a genuine body, complete specialized hardware, an unmodified 116-inch chassis, a correct-period drivetrain, and documented ownership. An old restoration with coherent materials and proper fittings may be preferred to a shinier car with vinyl upholstery, later instruments, improvised deck hardware, or extensive mechanical substitutions.

Auction results can vary sharply because condition categories conceal very different restoration needs. Paint quality alone says little about roof framing, body wood, bearing condition, cooling passages, or wheel integrity. The strongest cars are those whose mechanical work and structural restoration are documented in photographs and invoices.

There is no major competition record to inflate demand, and no homologation derivative sits above the standard car. Its market case is instead rooted in early Dodge Brothers history and the rarity of complete business-coupe bodies. That makes provenance and authenticity more influential than claims of speed or sporting character.

Cultural Relevance

The Business Coupe belonged to the landscape of sales representatives, small-business owners, rural professionals, and tradesmen who needed secure enclosed transport. Its rear compartment could carry samples or tools while the closed cabin protected the occupants from weather, dust, and road debris. It is therefore as relevant to commercial history as it is to passenger-car design.

Dodge Brothers clubs and early-car touring organizations have preserved much of the practical knowledge required to keep these cars operating. Club participation is especially valuable for number research, component identification, patterns, used parts, and advice on repairs that disappeared from general automotive practice decades ago.

Unlike later hot-rodding favorites, the Series 116 has not developed a large performance aftermarket. Modified survivors do exist, but the Business Coupe's strongest historical narrative comes from retaining the low-speed four-cylinder drivetrain, wood artillery wheels, upright body, and business-oriented interior arrangement.

Frequently Asked Questions

What engine is in the 1923 Dodge Brothers Series 116 Business Coupe?

It uses Dodge Brothers' naturally aspirated 212.3-cubic-inch inline-four, with a 3.875-inch bore, 4.5-inch stroke, and side valves in an L-head layout. Period specification references commonly list 35 horsepower.

Why is it called the Series 116?

The designation refers to the chassis wheelbase, which measures 116 inches between the front and rear axle centers. It is not an engine-displacement code.

How can a buyer identify a genuine Business Coupe?

Begin with the 116-inch wheelbase, then examine the two-passenger body, cargo-oriented rear compartment, roof and deck construction, doors, frame, drivetrain, and period hardware. Serial and engine numbers must be compared with the title and accepted Dodge Brothers records, since early registrations did not follow modern VIN practice.

Does the 1923 Series 116 have four-wheel brakes?

No. The 1923 chassis uses mechanically operated rear-wheel braking. A car fitted with front or hydraulic brakes has been modified or equipped with later components.

Are parts available for a Series 116 restoration?

Many routine engine, ignition, wiring, tire, gasket, and restoration supplies can be obtained through specialists and clubs. Business Coupe-specific trim, deck fittings, window hardware, structural patterns, and interior pieces are considerably harder to replace.

What are the most expensive Series 116 Business Coupe problems?

Severe structural-wood decay, incomplete body hardware, cracked or poorly repaired frames, damaged wooden wheels, cooling-system corrosion, and an engine requiring specialist bearing work can dominate the budget. Missing coupe-only parts are often more troublesome than ordinary mechanical wear.

What makes the Business Coupe collectible?

Its appeal comes from the uncommon two-seat closed body, the commercial purpose of its rear storage area, and its use of Dodge Brothers' established 212.3-cubic-inch drivetrain on the 116-inch chassis. Complete, correctly restored bodies are especially valued because specialized trim and structural pieces are difficult to replace.

Collector Takeaway

The 1923 Dodge Brothers Series 116 Business Coupe should be judged by what it was built to do: carry two people and their working cargo in a durable, weatherproof automobile. Its 212.3-cubic-inch four, three-speed gearbox, rear mechanical brakes, and leaf-sprung beam axles preserve the operating vocabulary of a car designed before synchronized transmissions and four-wheel hydraulic brakes became normal.

The decisive collector feature is the body. Engines can be rebuilt and common chassis parts can often be found, but a missing deck latch, garnish molding, regulator, roof pattern, or seat structure may demand months of research and fabrication. A complete, documented Business Coupe with an honest 116-inch chassis tells a sharper story about American working transport than a lavish restoration assembled from convenient later parts.