1939 Dodge Coupe Street Rod Means Business, Packs Old-School Hemi Firepower
https://www.autoevolution.com/news/1939 ... 48650.html#
More Photos: http://www.thehemi.com/gallery3/index.p ... e-331-HEMIWhen it comes to classic Dodge vehicles, we often think about land yachts of the 1950s and muscle cars of the 1960s. But Dodge's venture into the car manufacturing business was already a half-century old by the time the first "Forward Look" cars hit showrooms in 1955.
Brothers John and Horace established the company in 1900 and began manufacturing engine and chassis components. Their customers included Oldsmobile and Ford. Some 13 years later, the Dodge Brothers Motor Company was formed, and the first Dodge automobile was rolled off the assembly plant. In 1928, Dodge became a division of the Chrysler Corporation.
The company unveiled its first L-head eight-cylinder engine in 1930 and began recovering from the Great Depression in 1936. Three years later, Dodge celebrated its 25th anniversary with a brand-new design language with headlamps integrated into the front fenders and a two-piece, V-shaped windshield. This styling was revised on a yearly basis until Dodge converted to wartime production in the spring of 1942.
With most of these pre-WWII vehicles abandoned in junkyards and barns, 1939-1942 Dodges are rarely seen on public roads or at car shows today. And that makes me sad because I'm a big fan of this period. That's also precisely why I got excited when I stumbled across this 1939 Business Coupe hot rod.
Set to go under the hammer at Mecum's Glendale 2025 auction on March 22, this blue coupe is a rare sight in "street-rod" specs. But it's also proof that more late-1930s Dodges should be rescued for these kinds of projects. They just look awesome without their bulky fenders and slammed close to the ground on modern low-profile wheels.
An eye-catching rig on the outside, the Business Coupe is downright glamorous on the inside, thanks to a white bench seat and matching door panels. The contrast against the bright blue dashboard and window frames is striking, to say the least.
The layout isn't a massive departure from the stock 1939 Dodge. The chrome trim, for instance, is still in place. However, the dashboard now includes digital gauges, and there's even a Pioneer display in the center. The latter looks a bit out of place, but other than that, the setup is top-notch. By the way, the suicide doors are also an aftermarket thought.
The engine under the hood is a bit of a surprise. While most builders select modern Mopar engines, this coupe packs a first-generation Hemi engine (also known as the FirePower). It's a 331-cubic-inch (5.4-liter) powerplant, which debuted in 1951 and remained in production through 1955. The unit was primarily fitted in Chrysler automobiles and first-year Dodge C-series pickup trucks (1954).
Of course, the engine was rebuilt with modern components and looks rather flashy. It features dual quad carburetors, but output figures are a mystery. I'd say this mill packs more than 300 horsepower. The oomph hits the rear wheels through a TorqueFlite 727 automatic transmission and a custom rear end with 3.55:1 gears.
Other modern features include an aluminum radiator with an electric fan, a stainless steel gas tank, an electric fuel pump, electronic exhaust cutouts, disc brakes at all four corners, and an air suspension. The Dodge was featured in the December 2007 issue of Mopar Collector's Guide Magazine, so the build may be close to 20 years old. The odometer reads only 4,800 miles (7,725 km). How much is this Business Coupe worth?
I think the blue is probably on the light side, but it's still good looking!
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