DeSoto Firedome History

Introduced for 1952, the DeSoto Firedome brought the brand its first V8 — and its first eight-cylinder engine since 1931 — in the form of the 276-cubic-inch 'FireDome' Hemi, a hemispherical-head V8 making 160 hp. It was DeSoto's mainstream big car through the decade, sitting below the new Fireflite once that arrived for 1955.

The Firedome rode the Hemi's strong reputation and, from 1955, wore Virgil Exner's 'Forward Look' styling — many considered the 1955 DeSoto the best-looking car among Chrysler's five divisions that year. For 1957 it gained the dramatic soaring tailfins and triple taillights of the restyled range. The Firedome name was dropped after 1959 as DeSoto's lineup contracted.