Ford Pinto Case

Case Study: The Ford Pinto

In the late 1960s there was a huge demand for sub-compact cars. Ford Motor Company believed the need to answer the call and presented the first North American compact car. Ford named the car, the ‘Ford Pinto’, and began marketing the car on September 11, 1970. It was made available to the public in early 1971. The reputation of the Ford Pinto suffered over time because of the controversy centered on the controversial location of the vehicles fuel tank. The case involves ethical issues because Ford chose not to use the new design for the gas tank and concluded that the cost to fix the problem would be 2.5 times higher than the cost of deaths, injuries, and damages. The Ford Pinto case has symptom problems, unresolved issues, ethical issues, and other alternatives Ford could have used to prevent these problems from occurring and save innocent lives.

The concept of the Ford Pinto began with Lee Iacocca, a Ford executive in 1968. In 1960, Iacocca was promoted to the office vice-president of the car and truck group. In 1967, he was named executive vice-president then president in 1970 which continued through 1978. His quick rise to the top was due in part to his belief that the Japanese were going to corner the market with the VW Beetle, and American automobile manufacturers had to respond with something equivalent or better. The company president at the time Semon Knudsen was not as passionate about the sub-compact market and believed the Japanese could have it. Iacocca did not give up so easy and won over Ford with his idea for the sub-compact. Knudsen later resigned from the company(Sherefkin, 2003). This was the beginning of Lee Iacocca’s rise to the top and the birth of the Ford Pinto.

Lee Iacocca was very specific on the design of the Ford Pinto. He was quoted as saying “The Pinto was not to weigh an ounce over 2,000 pounds and not cost a cent over $2,000." (Engineering, 2009). Lee Iacocca also wanted the Pinto to...