The Ethical Dilemma in the Ford Pinto Case

On August 10, 1978 three young girls died in a 1973 Ford Pinto after being stuck from the rear by a driver in a van. The Ford Pinto was completely engulfed in flames and the accident resulted in the death of the three young girls. Today, the debate continues regarding whether or not The Ford Motor Company was responsible for this case and many other cases involving the Pinto bursting into flames resulting in disfigurement or death. Ford has argued for over three decades that The Ford Motor Company is not at fault, but rather the other motorists who happened to rear end the Pinto drivers. Many accuse Ford of rushing the Pinto into production without proper testing leaving a faulty
Taking into consideration the above discovery, which was provided to the jury, the personal decision would have been different from the actual outcome of the Pinto case. The belief is that Ford Motors behaved with greed; which prevented the corporation from making ethical and moral decisions with regard to taking on the responsibility to right the wrong. Ford Motors was consumed with the fact the organization was losing market shares to the overseas markets offering a smaller, more economical vehicle. Personal influence would have taken the cost-benefit analysis out of the equation and placed a higher value on human lives. Due to the fact, the case was criminal; deliberation for conviction would have included the corporate heads and engineers responsible for designing and assembling the Ford Pinto. In addition, while the driver of the van did hit the vehicle with the three young girls, the driver of the van would not have been allowed to be the sole scapegoat for the Ford attorney to present to the jury. During deliberations, James Neal argued, "the problem is not cars, but people" (Newton and Ford, 2008). People design and manufacture vehicles to be sold to the public. Having the knowledge of a defective vehicle and learning how much time passed before actual repairs commenced; influence to the jury deliberations would have been made for a conviction. One such wrongful death suit involving defective seat belts was filed in Texas. A young female