DeSoto Firedome

In short

• Built from 1952 to 1959 by DeSoto, a division of Chrysler Corporation, at Los Angeles (Maywood) Assembly and Wyoming Road Assembly.
• First engine: the 276 cu in (4.5 l) Hemi V8 with 119 kW (160 bhp); the Hemi grew to 291, 330 and 341 cu in.
• With the optional 361 cu in (5.9 l) V8 of 1958 output passed 220 kW (300 hp); that year 0–60 mph took just under eight seconds.
• The 1953 Firedome started at US$2,740; about 64,211 were built that year.

DeSoto Firedome at a glance

DeSoto before the Firedome

DeSoto's first years set its place in the Chrysler family. In 1929 the DeSoto Six broke the American first-year production record. In 1934 DeSoto received Chrysler's streamlined Airflow bodies on a shorter wheelbase. The design sold poorly, and DeSoto suffered until the more conventional Airstream arrived in 1935; the Airflow models ran from 1934 to 1936. Chrysler's own history, including the Airflow years, is told in our history of Chrysler.

DeSoto sat in the mid-price class of the corporation, with Plymouth as the entry-level make. The story of that cheaper sister brand is in our page on Plymouth's rise and fall.

Development and production history

The Firedome arrived for 1952 as DeSoto's premium line, with the 276 Hemi as its reason to exist. That year the DeSoto Custom name was retired. For 1953 the whole DeSoto range was redesigned, shortly before the make's 25th anniversary, and the Firedome became the top series in place of the Custom. It seated six and came as a four-door sedan, a five-door station wagon, a two-door coupé and a two-door convertible.

For 1955 Chrysler dropped the six-cylinder DeSoto Powermaster and added the Fireflite as the new top series, so the Firedome became the entry model. Its interior was still better trimmed than the old Powermaster's. For 1957 DeSoto introduced the Dodge-based Firesweep as its cheapest car, and the Firedome moved into the middle of the range.

Hemi V8 engines and performance

The 276 cu in Hemi of 1952 had a bore of 3.625 in and a stroke of 3.344 in. English Wikipedia's Hemi article lists it at 119 kW (160 bhp), and its Firedome article says the figure had risen to 127 kW (170 hp) by 1953. Facel Vega also used the engine. For 1955 a larger bore took the V8 to 291 cu in; the Firedome version had a two-barrel carburettor and 138 kW (185 bhp). The 1956 Hemi of 330 cu in gave 172 kW (230 bhp) in the Firedome, 34 kW (45 hp) more than in 1955. The 341 cu in Hemi, first fitted to the 1956 Adventurer, went into the Firedome and Fireflite for 1957.

The 1953 Firedome weighed 3,700 lb (1,700 kg), took 15.5 seconds from 0 to 60 mph and reached 100 mph (160 km/h). With 127 kW for 1,700 kg it had about 75 kW per tonne, a figure the power-to-weight calculator can set against other cars. The 1958 car with the 361 V8 was much quicker, with 0–60 mph just under eight seconds and a top speed of 115 mph (185 km/h).

The PowerFlite two-speed automatic was advertised as an option from 1955. A three-speed manual was officially standard, though few cars were built with it.

Design and equipment

The Firedome shared its body structure with the Dodge Meadowbrook and Plymouth Cranbrook. The new 1953 styling came just before DeSoto's 25th anniversary. In 1956 DeSoto reached record sales after the Forward Look redesign and the arrival of tailfins.

Equipment kept pace with the decade. In 1953 an AM radio cost US$85 extra. A new air conditioner arrived in 1957. In 1959 a padded dashboard was standard, and buyers could choose from 26 solid colours and 190 two-tone finishes.

Decline and the end of DeSoto

DeSoto sales fell almost 60 % in 1958 compared with 1957, the worst year since 1938. English Wikipedia links the fall to the economy and to build problems with the 1957 models. By 1959 Chrysler was struggling to sell DeSotos, and rumours spread that the make would be dropped.

The Firedome ended with the 1959 model year. For 1960 DeSoto offered only the Fireflite and Adventurer, and sales fell another 40 %. The 1961 car, simply called "DeSoto", came as a two-door and four-door hardtop and sold 3,034 units in total. Chrysler announced the end on 18 November 1960, and the last DeSoto left the line on 30 November 1960, 48 days after the 1961 models were introduced. Chrysler's 1961 Newport covered the same price range and sold more than 45,000 cars in its first year.

Variants and derivatives

Collecting today

The sources give no production totals for most years and no auction figures, so this section keeps to what they record. The key split for a collector is the engine. Cars from 1952 to 1957 have a Hemi of 276 to 341 cu in, and the 1958 car could have the optional 361. The 1955 cars mark the change from top series to entry model, and the 1957 cars the move to the middle of the range. More cars of the decade are in the 1950s classics section, and the remaining DeSoto models are in the DeSoto catalogue.

Photo gallery