diff --git a/src/device/serial.c b/src/device/serial.c
index deb97225a..8483f7fe3 100644
--- a/src/device/serial.c
+++ b/src/device/serial.c
@@ -999,7 +999,8 @@ void
 serial_standalone_init(void)
 {
     while (next_inst < SERIAL_MAX)
-        device_add_inst(&ns8250_device, next_inst + 1);
+        device_add_inst(!strcmp(machine_get_internal_name(), "if386sx") ? &ns16450_device :
+                        &ns8250_device, next_inst + 1);
 };
 
 const device_t ns8250_device = {