DeSoto Fireflite Sportsman
The DeSoto Fireflite occupied the premium position in DeSoto's standard lineup, sitting above the Firedome and below the limited-production Adventurer. The Sportsman hardtop coupe was the most popular body style in the Fireflite range, combining the dramatic styling of Virgil Exner's Forward Look design philosophy with a pillarless hardtop roofline that was both elegant and practical.
For 1956, the Fireflite Sportsman was powered by DeSoto's 330-cubic-inch Hemi V8, the hemispherical combustion chamber design that had established Chrysler Corporation as an engineering leader since its introduction in 1951. Producing 255 horsepower with a four-barrel carburetor, the Hemi provided smooth, refined power delivery appropriate for a car positioned as an upper-middle-class family automobile with sporting pretensions.
The Forward Look styling that arrived for 1955 and was dramatically enhanced for 1957 gave the Fireflite a visual presence that was unmatched in its price class. The soaring tail fins, extensive chrome trim, tri-tone paint combinations, and low, wide stance created a car that embodied the optimism and excess of the Eisenhower era. The Sportsman hardtop was particularly attractive, with its pillarless design allowing the side glass to be fully lowered for an open-air feeling without the complexity of a convertible top.
The Fireflite's equipment level was generous for its price point. Standard features included power steering, an automatic transmission, a heater, and whitewall tires. The available options list encompassed power brakes, power windows, power seats, factory air conditioning, and the push-button PowerFlite or TorqueFlite automatic transmission that became a Chrysler Corporation signature of the era.
DeSoto positioned the Fireflite as a competitor to the Buick Super and Oldsmobile 98, cars that offered luxury and performance in the middle ground between mainstream Chevrolets and Fords and the rarefied air of Cadillac and Lincoln. This positioning made the Fireflite popular with upper-middle-class buyers who wanted prestige and power without the extremes of price that the luxury makes demanded.
The Fireflite's Hemi engine was replaced by a wedge-head V8 for 1959, as Chrysler Corporation found the Hemi too expensive to manufacture for a mid-price car. The wedge engines were lighter, simpler, and cheaper to produce while offering comparable power output, but the loss of the Hemi designation reduced the Fireflite's cachet among performance-oriented buyers.
Production of the Fireflite ended with DeSoto's discontinuation in late 1960. The brand's demise was part of a broader consolidation of Chrysler Corporation's brand portfolio driven by the 1958 recession and shifting market dynamics that made maintaining five separate brands increasingly untenable.
Today, the DeSoto Fireflite Sportsman is appreciated as a handsome, well-built example of mid-1950s American automotive design. Hemi-powered 1956-1958 models are most sought by collectors, and the elaborate Forward Look styling has aged far better than the critics of the period predicted.
Check for rust in all lower body panels, floor pans, trunk floor, and around chrome trim moldings. Hemi-equipped 1956-1958 models are more desirable and valuable than later wedge-head cars. The PowerFlite 2-speed automatic is simpler but less desirable than the later TorqueFlite 3-speed. Chrome trim is extensive and rechroming is expensive. Interior trim in correct patterns and colors is extremely scarce. DeSoto-specific parts share many components with Dodge and Chrysler of the same era.
The Fireflite was DeSoto's top standard-production model from 1955-1960. Hemi engines were used from 1955-1958, replaced by wedge-head V8s for 1959-1960. The Sportsman hardtop was the most popular body style. DeSoto was discontinued in November 1960.