How can I work out exactly where my car was assembled? 1939 Dodge

[Rata Road]

Is there a site which would tell me where my 39 Dodge was built.

I would like to confirm mine was built in Canada.

Engine number D1203004 (original) and Body 9392919.

The reason I ask is I have discovered a 39 Desoto here in NZ which has the same basic look, headlights & body shape etc but it is a floor change, has a different speedo and the number plate light in the centre of the boot isnt a 2nd tail light like the Dodge is.

I am wondering if the Desoto is a NZ build using some earlier left over parts.

The Desoto original engine number is 2083 and chassis 9604614

Thanks

[Rusty_OToole]

The serial number or body number will tell you. They did build modified Plymouths as Dodge, DeSoto and Chrysler cars for export. Did New Zealand have its own assembly plant? As a member of the British Commonwealth they could import cars and parts from Canada tax free where they would have to pay import duty on American made cars and parts. So most likely they were sourced from Canada.

The exception would be models not made in Canada like the big straight eight Chrysler Imperial and New Yorker.

[Rusty_OToole]

We went over this before, your 39 Dodge was built in Windsor Ontario at the Canadian Chrysler plant.

Sorry I don't have my reference books handy but maybe someone will chime in with info on the DeSoto.

[1939_Buick]

Todd Motors assembled in Petone.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Automotive_industry_in_New_Zealand

NZ & AU details/model/features did not always follow USA (or Canada).

Both were a destination of old - superseded parts & designs.

 

In the last ~80 years a car can have had changes, which an owner may (incorrectly) think are "original". 

Say 50 years ago these car were close to scrap value.

Edited June 18, 2023 by 1939_Buick (see edit history)

[Fordy]

T.J Richards in Adelaide Australia built Chrysler bodies for the local market (and possibly export to N.Z. - look on the driver's seat riser for a Richards body tag. They "rationalised" output by utilising common sheet metal across different makes. Holdens body builders did the same with GM products - so a Chev and a Vauxhall for example could have shared fenders. 

Richards built the body on a few of my Hupps as they were imported in a stripped down form to reduce tarrifs

Richards eventually morphed into Chrysler Australia until they shut down local production in the late 1970's and Mitsubishi took over the factory.

[Rusty_OToole]

1939 - 1940 was when the floor gearshift was replaced by the column shift on most cars. 1940 was also the year American cars went to sealed beam headlights.

[Rata Road]

Thanks Guys.

Rusty you say you got your info from a reference book, is there an online site listing all this data for each of these brands?

39_Buick, I suspect the Desoto was locally made and you say maybe using some left over parts. Maybe imported cars were more expensive but also had the latest model specs.

I have found period adds that suggest my Dodge 6 is correct for the production year, the Desoto intrigues me.

 

[Rusty_OToole]

The reference book I refer to is a MoToR Repair Manual covering all American cars from 1940 to 1954. These manuals were published annually starting in the thirties and included information  on all makes over a period of 12 or 14 years, including data on serial numbers and engine numbers used to identify different models and sometimes which plant they were made in.

 

Chrysler engine numbers typically started with C for Chrysler, S for DeSoto, D for Dodge, P for Plymouth, T for Dodge truck, IND for industrial and M for marine.

 

Serial numbers were allotted in blocks to the different assembly plants. I think there were 3 in the US and 1 in Canada. Cars assembled outside the US and Canada, were not included.

 

You may be able to find the information with a web search. One source I find handy for information is this one

 

Auto Hobby Page - 22 Years Online - 335,000+ Car Pics - Specs - Events - Forum - HotRods - Classics

 

It has a lot of information and pictures of old cars but I don't think it has serial number or plant information.

[nzcarnerd]

The majority of the lower price Mopars for NZ were sourced from Canada but not all of them. Todds only began local assembly in 1935 so anything up then will have arrived already built up.

 

My copy of The Standard Catalog of American cars suggests that most of the Dodge D12s were actually built in the US, with Plymouth supplying the bodies, chassis and running gear. Apparently nearly 6,800 D12s were built of which 3,438 had right hand drive. Of the total, 3,885 were exported as CKD kits.  (Another 10,328 were built in the Windsor Canada plant for Canada.)

 

The whole business of export Mopars is a can of worms. Post war we had various models from a variety of sources. I have seen a 1952 Dodge Kingsway that was built in Detroit according to its data plate.

 

The major difference between US and Canadian sourced cars from 1939 is the engine. Canada only built 25-inch blocks, so the 1939 Plymouths and Plymouth-based cars built in Canada have a 201 version of the 25-inch block and the US cars have the 23-inch block. People have been buying wrong head gaskets ever since.

 

I have accumulated several photos of 1939 Mopars but have not seen their data plates. I only know the information that has been supplied for registration purposes, which is available on carjam but we all know that the info is often incorrect. Many often rubbish carjam but the fault lies with whoever supplied the information at the start.

 

As far as how many were sold in NZ I do have the registration figures.  As far as I know there were no 1940 Mopars sold here new as once NZ declared war on 3 September 1939 all orders for new cars were cancelled. Any cars registered new in 1940 will be late registrations of 1939 cars. The figures will likely include a few were late registrations of 1938 models.

 

New registrations -  Plymouth 1939 - 374, 1940 - 16 

                                  Dodge      1939 - 497, 1940 - 99

                                  DeSoto     1939 - 361, 1940 - 17

                                  Chrysler   1939 - 270, 1940 - 32 

 

Also of that total (1662) the great majority will be Plymouth-based models, even the Chryslers. I know there were a few Dodge D11 Luxury Liners imported but not a lot. There were always a handful of used cars being privately imported and it wasn't until 1962 that they were recorded separately.

 

As far as the use of the term 'left over parts', the is no reason to suggest that as they are 1939 cars using 1939 parts.

 

Attached a few local cars. I suspect all would originally have had square headlamps, but many have been converted to more readily available round ones. 

 

Photo credits to a variety of photographers, some from Flicker and others who have posted on various local facebook pages.

 

The Chrysler registered BJ7195 is currently for sale on TradeMe for NZ$30k. Even though it is badged Chrysler its engine is a P7C.

 

Chassis numbers of those with visible registrations numbers are readily found on carjam - Report - BJ7195 - 1939 CHRYSLER PLYMOUTH in Black | CARJAM

 

 

 

 

 

 

[nzcarnerd]

19 hours ago, Fordy said:

T.J Richards in Adelaide Australia built Chrysler bodies for the local market (and possibly export to N.Z. - look on the driver's seat riser for a Richards body tag. They "rationalised" output by utilising common sheet metal across different makes. Holdens body builders did the same with GM products - so a Chev and a Vauxhall for example could have shared fenders. 

Richards built the body on a few of my Hupps as they were imported in a stripped down form to reduce tarrifs

Richards eventually morphed into Chrysler Australia until they shut down local production in the late 1970's and Mitsubishi took over the factory.

The New Zealand and Australian markets were unrelated (primarily due to the Australian rules insisting on local bodies) and any Australian-built cars from that era to be found in NZ will be later private imports. I have a 1934 Holden body Buick that came to NZ in 1946. I believe there is the odd Richards body Mopar here.

[nzcarnerd]

Just for interest a few photos from the Centennial Exhibition held in Wellington in 1940. Even though the country was at war there is no doubt that the exhibition had been a long time in planning and went ahead anyway.  I wonder what happened to the 1940 Chrysler. As likely as not it was impressed into the military.

 

 

[nzcarnerd]

Just to show that not all '39 Mopars were Plymouth-based here is a 1939 Chrysler Royal converted to run on gas during the war.

 

 

[nzcarnerd]

Here is a long wheelbase '39 Plymouth in service as a taxi at Taeiri Airport near Dunedin in 1947. I guess the '37 is also a long wheelbase model as well.

 

 

[nzcarnerd]

23 hours ago, Rata Road said:

Is there a site which would tell me where my 39 Dodge was built.

I would like to confirm mine was built in Canada.

Engine number D1203004 (original) and Body 9392919.

The reason I ask is I have discovered a 39 Desoto here in NZ which has the same basic look, headlights & body shape etc but it is a floor change, has a different speedo and the number plate light in the centre of the boot isnt a 2nd tail light like the Dodge is.

I am wondering if the Desoto is a NZ build using some earlier left over parts.

The Desoto original engine number is 2083 and chassis 9604614

Thanks

Can you post a photo of your car?

 

I suspect the fourth digit in the engine number you quoted should be a C and not a 0. That would define it as a Canadian built car - assuming it has a 25-inch block.

[1939_Buick]

1 hour ago, nzcarnerd said:

Can you post a photo of your car?

 

I suspect the fourth digit in the engine number you quoted should be a C and not a 0. That would define it as a Canadian built car - assuming it has a 25-inch block.

Here

https://forums.aaca.org/topic/396951-1939-dodge-6-pics-video-brake-update-road-test-mpg-cruising-speed/#comment-2539181

And in this thread

https://forums.aaca.org/topic/398844-what-year-is-this-desoto/#comment-2545107

 

Edited June 19, 2023 by 1939_Buick (see edit history)

[Rata Road]

Rusty - Thanks for that info and the link, as always very helpful. With so many posts on here lately I had forgot some of the great info you had posted until i read back through them today.

Carnerd - Heaps of great info there, thanks so much. Great photos, looks like there is a few of these models tucked away in NZ.

Engine number - Number posted is correct, the 4th digit isn't "C".

 

 

[Rata Road]

Update - I had uploaded the engine block pic without looking at it and now I clearly see the 4th digit is a "C". The person who first registered it from new must of thought it was a zero as the Certificate of Registration reads. First registered 28 March 1940

[Rusty_OToole]

ply33 answered your question in a previous thread:

 

From my look up tool for Chrysler product serial numbers at https://www.ply33.com/Misc/vin 

 

Serial Number	9392919
Found in range	9390906 to 9393277
Serial	2014 of 2372
Year	1939
Make	Dodge
Model Code	D12
Plant	Windsor
Engine	6 cylinder L-head

[Rusty_OToole]

Plant - Windsor indicates the Canadian factory at Windsor Ontario.

[Rusty_OToole]

I used Ply33's decoder on your DeSoto number and this was the result.

 

Serial Number	9604614
Found in range	9603586 to 9607605
Serial	1029 of 4020
Year	1939
Make	Plymouth
Model Name	Road King
Model Code	P7
Plant	Windsor
Engine	6 cylinder 201.3 cu.in. L-head
Wheelbase	114 inches

[Rusty_OToole]

It seems there was a little "badge engineering" going on in New Zealand. If the cars were assembled there, no doubt there was a certain amount of local content. I already mentioned that Canadian sedans were all broadcloth upholstery, while yours is leather . Only open cars got leather upholstery in the US and Canada.

[Rata Road]

The seat covering is a mystery but I notice the Desoto is leather type exactly the same as my Dodge and both still have the original rear seat covering. 

From what I'm reading my car was assembled in Canada so it looks like they did supply them with leather type in Canada but maybe only for export. Not sure why we needed leather over cloth but I'm pleased as I prefer it.

Considering the missing tail light and different speedo maybe it came as a Plymouth and the dealership here sold it as a Desoto (Badge engineering as you call it).

I did notice while looking at 39 Desoto's in the US they had the same speedo as the one here which is different to the "Safety Signal" colour changing unit that my Dodge has and was a sales point as highlighted in the poster above. Maybe Dodge was the leader and higher spec name in 39?

This has been an interesting thread, thanks for your input guys.

 

 

[Rusty_OToole]

Something to keep in mind is that Plymouth was considered a low priced car in America while by British standards it was a large car. In New Zealand they would be selling against some more expensive, better equipped British models. So it makes sense that the NZ importer would request a few "up market" improvements like leather upholstery, possibly a few accessories like cigar lighter were made standard and a more lavishly equipped model badged as a DeSoto, a more expensive car.

 

The cheapest "low price leader" Plymouth in the US and Canada might only have one windshield wiper, no arm rests, less chrome, and other penny pinching features. I doubt such a car was offered for export.

 

I notice some of the pictures show the same car with a big all chrome grille which was never seen in Canada or the US.

[Rusty_OToole]

It's not well known that Chrysler Corporation overtook Ford in 1942 to become the world's second largest producer of automobiles, second only to General Motors. In spite of the fact that Ford outsold Plymouth 2:1. Chrysler was very strong in the medium priced field with their Dodge, DeSoto and Chrysler sixes perennial best sellers, while Ford only had Mercury. If a loyal Ford man wanted something nicer, if he did not happen to like the Mercury his only other choice was Lincoln, a luxury car beyond the reach of most buyers.

Chrysler had two luxury models both with straight eight engines. The Chrysler New Yorker and the even more posh Imperial.

Plymouth was the low priced car, a favorite of skilled working men, school teachers and the like. Dodge was a little bigger and more expensive a favorite of farmers and the lower middle class and the better off working class. DeSoto used the same body as Chrysler, with a slightly smaller version of the Chrysler engine. It was a rather "flash" car and was usually the first to try out new features. They even tried disappearing headlights in 1942. But was basically a Chrysler at a slightly lower price. This was their middle class car. The Chrysler six was very much the same in a more conservative suit and a little more quality in the interior fittings, and a slightly more powerful engine. The sort of car a small town banker or lawyer would drive.

Then there was the New Yorker, the same body on a longer frame to accommodate the long straight eight engine. And the Imperial, an out and out luxury car selling against Cadillac Lincoln and Packard.

 

In Canada things were a little different. Canada was a prosperous country in those days but wages were slightly lower than in the US and prices slightly higher. They had a Plymouth the same as the US but they also had a Dodge that was really a Plymouth dressed up with Dodge trim. The American Dodge was given the name Dodge Luxury Liner. DeSoto and Chrysler six were very much as in the US. The straight eight New Yorker was seldom seen and I don't recall ever seeing an Imperial from the thirties or forties. Although I have seen a few from the fifties.

 

Your Dodge is really the Canadian Plymouth based Dodge with a few improvements like the leather upholstery. It seems they also had a Plymouth based DeSoto. I know in England they sold Plymouths as Chryslers some with small bore engines because of the horsepower tax. It seems they would alter their models to suit the needs of different export markets.

[Rata Road]

Good stuff

Thanks

[Barney Eaton]

I looked in my copy of standard Catalog of American cars 1805-1942 (second edition) 

This is the information they had.  

 

[Rusty_OToole]

I am trying to imagine the typical customer for your Dodge in New Zealand in 1939 and what other cars he might consider. He might compare the Dodge to Ford, Chevrolet or Studebaker among American cars, and certain middle class six cylinder English cars like Rover, Wolseley, Humber or one of the larger Austins.

I should think he would find the Dodge roomy and comfortable with good over the road performance and decent economy while it had an excellent reputation for long life and reliable service. And sold for a little less money than the English competition. While the English cars were equally comfortable with similar performance and economy while obviously being more expensive especially in the wood and leather interior appointments. It would be up to the customer to weigh the relative merits, and in this case, he chose the practical virtues of the Dodge over the more aesthetically pleasing English competition.

Does this make sense?  How do you see the Dodge in the New Zealand market at that time?

[Rata Road]

Barney thats interesting info. A Junior series Dodge using Plymouth body but Dodge running gear, grill etc is starting to make sense and putting the pieces together.

The Guy with the Desoto thinks his car was made in the USA then taken to Canada for export, I thought that wont be right making a RHD in the USA but reading your info he is probably correct.

Your article says Windsor built cars were "mainly" for Canadian use (not all). Rusty's research shows my Dodge was built in Windsor so that could also be correct.

Rusty I don't have any information on why people would choose a Dodge over a English brand. We are very lucky in NZ as we never built our own cars hence got access to a variety of brands from all over the world.

Apparently a Dunedin company "Gardner Motors" had the Chrysler agency and was linked to Dunedin Taxis. The Taxi company had a fleet of Mopar for decades (promoted by their parent company) but also as they were so reliable and could handle the very steep Dunedin streets. I was talking to an old Mechanic last week (who done his apprenticeship in Dunedin) and he remembers one Taxi operator in Dunedin switched to Chev for a couple of years but then back to Dodge as the maintenance costs were too high on the Chev. 

Strong recommendations from Taxi drivers must have been priceless advertising during that era.

[nzcarnerd]

Todds were the NZ agents for all Chrysler products for a long time and began local assembly in 1935. The company had its origins in a small country garage in Heriot in Central Otago. 

 

Some good info here - click on the Motor Industry page - History - Todd Corporation

[nzcarnerd]

Regarding why buyers would choose an American car over a British one in 1939. Simple answer - price. Anything British with comparable power and size to a 'regular' American car - e g Ford, Chev, Dodge etc - cost at least half as much again. American cars dominated the NZ large car market up to WW2. During the war there was a steady trickle of new trucks (and a handful of cars) coming into NZ, mostly for the military, that the UK was unable to supply.

 

The outbreak of war was a sort of coincidence as far as the NZ car market was concerned. Partly I think due to the very brief worldwide downturn in 1938 which had an effect on US car as sales as well, NZ suffered a 'balance of payments crisis', which led to the government introducing a whole raft of sever import restrictions, on all sorts of products, which led to the situation that most of us who grew up in the 1950s-1970s learned to live with where many things were either simply not available or were very expensive. I should add though that nobody went hungry and there was near full employment. This led to increasing numbers of British cars on the road as tariffs favoured British Empire products. Post WW2 dollar restrictions caused American cars to drop to a very small percentage of the overall market. The opening up of the economy that began in the 1980s led to NZ going from one of the most restricted markets to nearly the most unrestricted market in the world.

 

As far as the situation of US plants building right hand drive cars, of course they all did up until the gradual change to left hand drive that happened mostly before WW1. Practically all makes continued to offer right hand drive cars for export. GM's Tarrytown, NY, plant, one of the oldest in the industry, supplied rhd stuff for export quite until late in the piece (up to 1970s maybe?). 

 

I presume there were a few cars not available in right hand drive. The only Packard Twin Sixes I have seen photos of in NZ were left hand drive.

 

This photo taken in Rotorua of a group of hire cars used to show visitors around the area shows two left hand drive cars - at the back a circa 1915 Chalmers and in the middle at the front I think might be a Reo. The others were models obviously readily available in right hand drive, at the back an Oldsmobile and at the front A Studebaker Big Six and a Cadillac. The second photo shows another Chalmers.

 

 

 

 

[nzcarnerd]

Regarding new prices (which will mean nothing to US readers) it would seem that the Mopar stuff was dropped in price during the 1939 year - one ad suggesting it was due to a change from US sourcing to Canadian.

 

A small English car was not a lot cheaper. A Hillman Minx, another model handled by Todds, was 288 pounds in 1939.

 

I couldn't find any ads with prices for new 1939 medium/larger English models, but secondhand prices would suggest they were quite a lot above the American low-price models. The larger English cars sold in much lower numbers than the US cars.

 

Even though in 1939 English makes outsold American ones by 3 to 2, American cars dominated the large car sector, the two biggest sellers were Ford and Chevrolet with the combined Mopar models a distant third. Because so many Fords were hotrodded (or became racing stockcars) the survival rate today of Chevs and Mopars of that era is higher than that of Fords.

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Studebaker Commander, a car not much bigger than the Plymouth was quite a lot dearer.

 

[nzcarnerd]

I didn't find any reference to Gardner Motors in the local papers - perhaps they didn't advertise.

 

I did find this one from Cossens and Black - https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/ODT19390530.2.6.4?end_date=31-12-1939&items_per_page=10&phrase=2&query=new+Dodge&snippet=true&start_date=01-01-1939&title=AHCOG%2cBH%2cCL%2cCROMARG%2cDUNST%2cESD%2cLCM%2cLCP%2cLWM%2cMIC%2cMTBM%2cNOT%2cOAM%2cODT

[Rusty_OToole]

NZcarnerd that is more or less what I thought except, I thought the difference in price between comparable British and American cars would be closer as both had to be shipped a long way.

I think this is why the Dodge and DeSoto had leather upholstery and possibly a few other accessories that were optional in North America. They were competing with cars that, while more expensive, had nicer interiors with leather and wood ambience and possibly more instruments and other niceties.

The Americans had nothing to compare to the smaller more economical English cars but if you wanted a larger six cylinder car that could stand up to tough conditions and hard work, they were hard to beat especially at a price.

 

American car companies sold a lot of cars in south America, Europe, Asia, and other places that could be supplied from Detroit. But they would be subject to import duty. Anything sourced from Canada got preference as part of the British Commonwealth and paid no import duty at least in other Commonwealth countries. This is why cars to New Zealand and Australia were so often imported from Canada.

 

As recently as the 1980s and 90s a lot of cars destined for the middle east were made by GM in Oshawa. They made a special version of the full sized Impala sedan and station wagon for the middle east with heavy duty cooling system, air conditioning, suspension special interior and other improvements. They cost quite a bit more than the regular models but they sold a lot of them to oil rich countries.

 

There was a special order of Chev Malibu sedans with V8 engines, manual transmissions and air conditioning destined for Iraq which were never delivered because of the Iraq war. They were sold off cheap in Canada and were known as "Iraqui taxis" although in fact they were supposed to be used by government officials.

 

So Canada has been used to building special models for export for a long time.

[Rusty_OToole]

The advertisements seem to imply that importing the cars from Canada is something new, and cause for a significant drop in prices. This is a bit surprising as I thought we had been making cars for export all along.

[nzcarnerd]

3 hours ago, Rusty_OToole said:

The advertisements seem to imply that importing the cars from Canada is something new, and cause for a significant drop in prices. This is a bit surprising as I thought we had been making cars for export all along.

You are correct but for some reason Todds. the importer, sourced some models from the USA as well though I don't know why.

 

They only began local assembly in 1935. Maybe Canada didn't supply CKD kits until 1939?

[nzcarnerd]

3 hours ago, Rusty_OToole said:

NZcarnerd that is more or less what I thought except, I thought the difference in price between comparable British and American cars would be closer as both had to be shipped a long way.

I think this is why the Dodge and DeSoto had leather upholstery and possibly a few other accessories that were optional in North America. They were competing with cars that, while more expensive, had nicer interiors with leather and wood ambience and possibly more instruments and other niceties.

The Americans had nothing to compare to the smaller more economical English cars but if you wanted a larger six cylinder car that could stand up to tough conditions and hard work, they were hard to beat especially at a price.

 

American car companies sold a lot of cars in south America, Europe, Asia, and other places that could be supplied from Detroit. But they would be subject to import duty. Anything sourced from Canada got preference as part of the British Commonwealth and paid no import duty at least in other Commonwealth countries. This is why cars to New Zealand and Australia were so often imported from Canada.

 

As recently as the 1980s and 90s a lot of cars destined for the middle east were made by GM in Oshawa. They made a special version of the full sized Impala sedan and station wagon for the middle east with heavy duty cooling system, air conditioning, suspension special interior and other improvements. They cost quite a bit more than the regular models but they sold a lot of them to oil rich countries.

 

There was a special order of Chev Malibu sedans with V8 engines, manual transmissions and air conditioning destined for Iraq which were never delivered because of the Iraq war. They were sold off cheap in Canada and were known as "Iraqui taxis" although in fact they were supposed to be used by government officials.

 

So Canada has been used to building special models for export for a long time.

One thing that has always interested me is that the US industry began export right from its very earliest days when I would have thought they would struggle to supply local demand. American cars were imported to NZ in penny numbers but we had Oldsmobiles, Cadillacs and Ramblers from their earliest years, along with a lot of more obscure stuff. Of course in those days anybody could contact a manufacturer and get a few cars sent out, but I think in many cases the manufacturer went out of business by the time the importer reordered.

 

Just as an example Henry Ranger, who later became the local Ford dealer, had these Conrad cars on display at the local Agricultural and Pastoral Show in November 1903. My copy of The Standard Catalog says Conrad went out of business in 1903 and I believe there is only one surviving example of the make.

 

 

[Rusty_OToole]

A web site gives the value of the pound as $4.68 in 1939. At that rate some of the prices in the above ads would be

 

Plymouth    349 = $1633.32

 

Dodge         425 = $1989

 

DeSoto        359 =$1680.12

 

Chrysler       399 = $1867.32

 

Studebaker  555 = $2597

 

Two of these prices seem out of line, in the US Dodge was between Plymouth and DeSoto in price, and Studebaker Commander was selling against Dodge or DeSoto.

 

All these prices are about twice as much as the same car sold for in the US. For $2597 you could have bought a Cadillac.

[Rusty_OToole]

I know Chrysler Canada got its own engine foundry  in 1938. Perhaps up until then they did not have a complete manufacturing facility, only an assembly line for imported parts. But after 1938 could build complete cars?

[bens39dodge]

1939 Dodge. Been in my care since 1982. Note headlamp difference. First year of ram ornament, last year to mention Dodge Brothers on under hood plates.

[keiser31]

2 hours ago, bens39dodge said:

1939 Dodge. Been in my care since 1982. Note headlamp difference. First year of ram ornament, last year to mention Dodge Brothers on under hood plates.

Just to inform....1931 is when the first ram ornament showed up on Dodge Brothers cars.

Edited April 2 by keiser31 (see edit history)