If you’re young enough, you may not even know that your car is equipped with power steering. Power steering has been a standard-equipment item on most new U.S.-market vehicles for several decades now. This author once owned a Volkswagen Scirocco that was not equipped with power steering, but that car weighed just 2100 pounds.
1952 DeSoto: History of Power Steering
The average new vehicle today weighs more than twice that figure, coming in around 4400 pounds. That mass, plus the sheer size of contemporary wheels and tires, would make turning a vehicle’s steering wheel difficult without a little mechanical assistance. That’s where power steering comes in.
Chrysler Imperial
It wasn’t until 1951 when American drivers first enjoyed a little relief from the ardors of cranking a steering wheel without a little power assistance. It was for that model year that the Chrysler Imperial became the first American car offered with power steering. The optional system was staggeringly expensive. For 1951, ordering your Imperial with power steering added $226 to the bottom line, that’s more than $2800 in 2025 money.
Birth of Power Steering
The easy-steering technology spread quickly throughout the Chrysler portfolio, which then included Chrysler, DeSoto, Dodge, and Plymouth. Imperial would become a standalone brand a few years later.
A big year for Desoto, 1952 brought with it not only power steering, but the brand’s first-ever high-compression V8.
DeSoto Firedome
The new engine, dubbed Firedome, was offered only in the topline Firedome DeSoto series cars, which included a sedan, coupe, convertible and wagon. And, given that the Firedome lineup ranged in price from about $2500 to about $3800, the power steering option was decidedly pricey, coming in at $199 (about $2400 today).
TV Commercial
The commercial here is entertaining if only because the young lady behind the wheel appears to twirl the steering wheel with the ease of a pizza maker tossing dough. That said, if you’ve never driven a car without power steering, it would be difficult for you to appreciate what a revelation the system was.
Last Car with Manual Steering
Unless someone tells us different, we’re going to say that the last car sold in the U.S. with manual steering was the 1997 Toyota Tercel CE. Available as a coupe and a sedan, the CE was the least-expensive Tercel trim level offered in 1997. And, as a small and light-weight vehicle, likely wasn’t difficult to drive without power steering. Click here for more classic car fun.
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1952 Desoto Pictures
Click below for enlarged images
