THE PINTO CASE A SHORT SUMMARY In the early 1960s Ford’s market position was being heavily eroded by competition from domestic and foreign manufactures of subcompacts. Lee Iacocca, then President of Ford, was determined to regain Ford’s share of the market by having a new subcompact, the Pinto, in production by 1970. Then Ford engineers crash tested an early model of the Pinto. They found that when the automobile was struck from the rear at 20 miles per hour, the gas tank regularly ruptured. Stray
Words: 391 - Pages: 2
The Case of the Ford Pinto By James Abstract Product harm crisis can be defined as a sudden break in a product’s life cycle (Siomkos, G.J and Kurzbard. J. 1994). In 1971 the Ford Motor Company created a product harm crisis with the introduction of the Ford Pinto. The Ford Pinto is known to be one of the most dangerous vehicles ever produced in automotive history due to several serious design flaws. This paper will identify the factors that contributed to the product
Words: 979 - Pages: 4
Case Study Discussion and Executive Summary June 27, 2011 MGT/216 Case Study Discussion and Executive Summary This paper explores “The Ford Pinto Case” managing of business ethics. Numerous factors suggest within this research that Ford Motor Company was negligent and violated its code of ethics. To understand how relationships are affected a closer look at Ford Motor Company missions and values will align Team B’s personal values with Ford Motor Company. In this paper the study to
Words: 1203 - Pages: 5
THE FORD PINTO CASE The scandal and the trial On August 10, 1978, a tragic automobile accident occurred on U.S. Highway 33 near Goshen, Indiana. Sisters Judy and Lynn Ulrich (ages 18 and 16, respectively) and their cousin Donna Ulrich (age 18) were struck from the rear in their 1973 Ford Pinto by a van. The gas tank of the Pinto ruprured, the car burst into flames and the three teenagers were burned to death. Subsequently an Elkhart County grand jury returned a criminal homicide charge against
Words: 2378 - Pages: 10
Case Analysis: Pinto Fires Introduction Greed is the root to evil or at least the motivation behind some corporations making a good, ethical decision. The Ford Motor Company fell into a trap of greed that would cost many human lives. Before the disaster of the Pinto Fires, Ford had a reputation as being the safety pioneer in the automobile industry with additions such as the seat belts. However, as the invention of small cars began to take emerge Ford began to loose market shares to the foreign
Words: 1551 - Pages: 7
The Ford Pinto Case Team B Management 216 May 10, 2011 Ian Finley The Ford Pinto Case The horrific tragedy that took place on August 10, 1978 involving Judy Ann Ulrich, Lynn Marie, and Donna Ulrich was a real eye opener to a lot of consumers regarding the Ford Pinto. A van collided into the back of the young girl’s car causing the Pinto to collapse, the fuel tank to rupture, and the car to engulf into flames. Donna and Lynn Marie were trapped inside and suffered to death as a result of the
Words: 1068 - Pages: 5
Introduction The unfortunate tragedies involving the explosion of Ford Pinto's due to a design defect led to a main debate regarding the use of a cost-benefit analysis and the ethics revolving around the company’s decision to go further with the initial, defective prototype. Ethical Dilemma Ford was completely aware of the safety issues the prototype was facing, but solving the issue would cause great disadvantage for the company: production schedule had to be modified, resulting in delays
Words: 1860 - Pages: 8
eternity into the world’s future. In 1972, Ford Motor Company released the Ford Pinto, a small cheap car that could financially compete with the new economic cars from Asia. The Ford Pinto got a lot of attention because it was the first American made car to rival the Asia automobiles. However, the Pinto had a design flaw in that the position of the fuel tank was poorly placed and as a result was highly susceptible to car fires. This flaw was recognized by ford but was deemed an economic step backwards
Words: 827 - Pages: 4
In this presentation, a very important case that transpired from 1971 to 1978 with the Ford Motor Company, under the leadership of Mr. Lee Iacocca, CEO will be explored. During that time the CEO of Ford wanted to manufacture a vehicle to keep up with the competition that was going on with other manufactures. The Ford Company experienced many tragic issues with this vehicle having to pay millions of dollars in lawsuits. This was due to their negligence in not following the proper inspection procedures
Words: 295 - Pages: 2
Case: The Ford Pinto 1.) In my judgment, I feel that the management of Ford Company should be held morally responsible for Mrs. Gray’s death and Richard Grimshaw’s injuries. This is because Ford Company put the Pinto on the market to be sold. In that case, the managers were aware of the risk factors if indeed these cars did sale. Certainly, I do feel the Ford Company as a whole, should be held legally liable for the death of Mrs. Gray and the injuries of Richard Grimshaw. I strongly believe
Words: 919 - Pages: 4
