DeSoto Firedome: which version to buy
If you are choosing a DeSoto Firedome rather than learning what the name is, the catalogue data leave one real fork: 4.5 AT versus 4.5 MT. Both sit in the single generation (1952-01-01 to 1959-12-31), both are Cabrio, both use the same 4500 cm³ Gasoline V-shaped 8 with 160 hp (118 kW), both are RWD, and both are measured at 15.5 s to 100 km/h and 160 km/h top speed.
If you are choosing a DeSoto Firedome rather than learning what the name is, the catalogue data leave one real fork: 4.5 AT versus 4.5 MT. Both sit in the single generation (1952-01-01 to 1959-12-31), both are Cabrio, both use the same 4500 cm³ Gasoline V-shaped 8 with 160 hp (118 kW), both are RWD, and both are measured at 15.5 s to 100 km/h and 160 km/h top speed. There is no second generation to “step up” into, no restyle split in the data, and no measured gap in power, acceleration, or top speed. The buy decision is the gearbox: Automatic with 2 gears on 4.5 AT, or Manual with 3 gears on 4.5 MT.
Firedome specs that actually differ between versions
| Version | hp | Nm | Displacement (cm³) | Fuel | Cylinders | Layout | Boost | Gearbox | Gears | Drive |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4.5 AT | 160 | not measured | 4500 | Gasoline | 8 | V-shaped | No | Automatic | 2 | RWD |
| 4.5 MT | 160 | not measured | 4500 | Gasoline | 8 | V-shaped | No | Manual | 3 | RWD |
Power is identical: 160 hp and 118 kW on 4.5 AT and on 4.5 MT. Displacement is identical: 4500 cm³. Fuel is Gasoline on both. Cylinders are 8, layout is V-shaped, valves per cylinder are 2, boost is No. Engine placement is Front, longitudinal. Induction is Carburetor. Drive is RWD. Front suspension is Dependent, leaf spring. Front brakes are Drum. Rear suspension is not measured. Rear brakes are not measured.
What is not the same is only the transmission block: 4.5 AT is Automatic with 2 gears; 4.5 MT is Manual with 3 gears. That is +1 gear on the Manual side (3 − 2 = 1). There is no second engine family in the data to mix with those boxes.
Engine: 4500 cm³, 160 hp, same specific output on both Firedome versions
People looking up Firedome engine specs are looking at one engine description applied twice.
- Displacement: 4500 cm³ on 4.5 AT and 4500 cm³ on 4.5 MT.
- Output: 160 hp / 118 kW on both. rpm for peak power is not measured on either version.
- Torque (Nm) is not measured on 4.5 AT and not measured on 4.5 MT. Torque rpm is not measured.
- Compression ratio is not measured. Bore and stroke are not measured. Fuel grade is not measured.
Arithmetic that is allowed from those numbers:
- Power per litre: 160 hp ÷ 4.5 L = 35.6 hp per litre on 4.5 AT and the same 35.6 hp per litre on 4.5 MT (4500 cm³ = 4.5 L).
- kW per litre: 118 kW ÷ 4.5 L = 26.2 kW per litre on both versions.
- hp per kW check: 160 ÷ 118 ≈ 1.36 hp per kW on both; the two versions do not diverge here.
Because boost is No on both, you are not buying a forced-induction step when you switch from 4.5 AT to 4.5 MT. Because cylinders (8), layout (V-shaped), valves per cylinder (2), placement (Front, longitudinal), and Carburetor are the same, you are not buying a different cylinder count, a different layout, or a different induction system either. The engine row in a buy list is a tie.
Performance: 0–100 and top speed are a dead heat
Measured performance in the data:
| Version | 0–100 (s) | Top speed (km/h) |
|---|---|---|
| 4.5 AT | 15.5 | 160 |
| 4.5 MT | 15.5 | 160 |
Difference in 0–100: 15.5 − 15.5 = 0.0 s. Difference in top speed: 160 − 160 = 0 km/h. The extra gear on 4.5 MT (3 versus 2) does not show up as a faster sprint or a higher peak in these figures. If you expected the Manual to be quicker because it has one more ratio, the catalogue numbers do not support that expectation.
rpm at peak power is not measured, so you cannot rank which version “lives” higher in the rev range. Nm is not measured, so you cannot rank which version pulls harder in the mid range. Weight is not measured (see dimensions), so you cannot compute kg per horsepower and you cannot say the Automatic is heavier. On performance alone, 4.5 AT and 4.5 MT are the same car in this dataset.
mpg and economy: not measured on either Firedome
Fuel consumption is not measured for city, highway, or combined on 4.5 AT. The same three figures are not measured on 4.5 MT. Tank size is not measured on either. CO2 is not measured. Eco class is not measured.
You therefore cannot pick a Firedome version on mpg. You cannot say the 2-speed Automatic uses more fuel than the 3-speed Manual, and you cannot say the opposite. Any “which version is cheaper to run” argument that needs litres per 100 km or a tank range has no number in this catalogue.
Dimensions, weight, clearance, wheels: not measured
Kerb weight is not measured on 4.5 AT and not measured on 4.5 MT. Gross weight is not measured on both. Ground clearance is not measured on both. Wheel sizes are not measured on both. Tank is not measured on both.
Weight per horsepower cannot be calculated: there is no kerb mass to divide by 160 hp. You cannot claim one version is the “lighter” Firedome. You cannot rank ride height. You cannot match tyre sizes. Body type is Cabrio for the whole generation, so you are not choosing between body styles inside the model — only between 4.5 AT and 4.5 MT under that Cabrio.
Front suspension (Dependent, leaf spring) and front brakes (Drum) match. Rear suspension and rear brakes are not measured on both, so you cannot use those as a buy filter.
Generations: one generation, so no “newer Firedome” to pay for
The model has 1 generation in the data.
1 generation (kluch in source: years 1952-01-01–1959-12-31): Cabrio, 2 versions — 4.5 AT and 4.5 MT. Both versions share those start and stop dates. There is no restyling called out as a separate generation. There is no generation 2 with more power, a different body, or a different drive layout.
What a generation change would usually buy you — extra hp, a new body type, AWD instead of RWD, a later stop year — is not on the table. Comparing “between generations” here is a comparison of one row to itself: 160 hp versus 160 hp, Cabrio versus Cabrio, 1952–1959 versus 1952–1959. The buy question collapses to the two modifications inside that one generation.
Production window length from the given dates: 1952-01-01 through 1959-12-31 is the same window for 4.5 AT and 4.5 MT. Neither version is a late-only or early-only car in this dataset. You cannot use “newer year range” as a reason to prefer one badge over the other.
Which version to choose: Firedome 4.5 AT vs 4.5 MT
Use only the measured gaps.
Choose 4.5 AT if the Automatic is the point. You get Automatic and 2 gears, 160 hp, 118 kW, 4500 cm³ Gasoline, 8 cylinders V-shaped, 2 valves per cylinder, boost No, Front, longitudinal, Carburetor, RWD, 15.5 s to 100 km/h, 160 km/h, Cabrio, Dependent, leaf spring front, Drum front. You do not get a third gear. You do not get more power than 4.5 MT. You do not get a measured economy or weight advantage — those are not measured.
Choose 4.5 MT if the Manual and the extra ratio are the point. You get Manual and 3 gears — one more gear than 4.5 AT — with the same 160 hp, same 118 kW, same 4500 cm³, same Gasoline, same 8 / V-shaped / 2 valves per cylinder / No boost, same Front, longitudinal Carburetor layout, same RWD, same 15.5 s, same 160 km/h, same Cabrio chassis fields that are filled in. You do not get a measured 0–100 or top-speed gain from that extra gear.
Do not choose on power. 160 − 160 = 0 hp. 118 − 118 = 0 kW. Specific output is 35.6 hp/L on both.
Do not choose on 0–100 or top speed. Both 15.5 s and 160 km/h.
Do not choose on mpg, tank, CO2, or eco class. All not measured.
Do not choose on kerb weight, gross weight, clearance, or wheels. All not measured. kg/hp is not measured.
Do not choose on a later generation. There is 1 generation and both versions live in it.
Do not choose on body type. Both are Cabrio.
What the “extra money” buys is not priced here. There are no prices in the data. You cannot compute dollars per horsepower or say the Automatic premium buys X hp — it buys 0 extra hp. If a seller asks more for one badge, the catalogue can only tell you that the measured mechanical extra is the gearbox type (Automatic 2 vs Manual 3), not more displacement, not more cylinders, not boost, not another driven axle.
Reliability and problems: not in this catalogue
Search interest in Firedome problems and reliability does not have corresponding fields in the launch data. There is no failure-rate figure, no service-interval figure, and no list of known faults for 4.5 AT or 4.5 MT. What you can say without inventing: both versions share the same engine description (4500 cm³, Gasoline, 8, V-shaped, Carburetor, boost No) and the same drive (RWD), so a reliability story that treated them as two different engines would go beyond this dataset. The only documented split that could matter to upkeep is Automatic 2 versus Manual 3 — and even that is a type difference, not a measured durability score.
Buy shortlist from the numbers
1. 4.5 AT — Automatic, 2 gears, 160 hp, 15.5 s, 160 km/h, RWD Cabrio, 35.6 hp/L. 2. 4.5 MT — Manual, 3 gears, 160 hp, 15.5 s, 160 km/h, RWD Cabrio, 35.6 hp/L.
If you want the two-speed Automatic Firedome, take 4.5 AT. If you want the three-speed Manual Firedome, take 4.5 MT. Every other filled-in spec in this catalogue is a match; every unfilled spec is not measured on both sides, so it cannot break the tie.