An Analysis of Ford Pinto Production Using Utilitarian Principles

This essay provides a utilitarian analysis of the Ford Pinto case, focusing on the ethical considerations of Ford Motor Company's production decisions. The analysis examines the company's prioritization of market share and cost-benefit analysis over consumer safety, particularly concerning the placement of the fuel tank and the lack of rear-end impact testing. The essay explores how Ford's actions, such as ignoring failed test results and choosing not to install safety baffles, contradict utilitarian principles by failing to maximize overall happiness and safety for the greatest number of people. The paper concludes that Ford's decisions regarding the Pinto were morally wrong and did not align with the utilitarian approach, highlighting the importance of ethical considerations in business practices.

Running head: UTILITARIAN ANALYSIS
UTILITARIAN ANALYSIS
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1UTILITARIAN ANALYSIS
The theory of Utilitarianism supports the activities, which results in happiness and
rejects the harm causing actions. Utilitarian analysis is used for the betterment of the society
by assessing the social, political as well as economic decisions of an
individual/group/company (Raam 20). In this paper, the Utilitarian analysis will be carried
out for Ford Motor Company. The essay will discuss on the utilitarian approach for the
assessment of an issue pertaining to the company’s decision followed by a moral judgement
regarding a particular action. The essay tends to argue on the morality attached in the
production of the Ford Pinto.
Utilitarian approach reflects the act of involving in an action, which can benefit for
most number of people. An action is analysed in regards of its outcomes by using Utilitarian
approach (De George and Richard 9). The approach aims at attaining ‘the greatest good for
greatest number’, which restricts the consequences of harming anyone (Boutilier et al. 190)
The action, which will be analysed under the frame of Utilitarianism, is the morality intact in
the production of Ford Pinto by Ford Motor Company. Ford Motor Company manufactured a
subcompact car, Ford Pinto. It was manufactured for the mass as it was planned to be an
affordable car option by Ford to compete with the Japanese imported cars.
One of the ethical flaw of Ford Motor Company was that the model Ford Pinto was
not tested for rear-end impact before the production in spite the engineers knowledge about
the safety standards, which requires testing. They focused solely on the period of production
for an affordable car by reducing the usual time. Ford Motor Company presented a target of
25 months of introducing the car line shifting form a usual of 43 months. The business
managers of the company prioritized the impact of competing with an affordable option in the
automobile segment than concentrating on manufacturing a safe as well as valued product.
Analysis through Utilitarianism can reflect that the safety of the target market, which is the
‘most’ in this case, was not prioritized over the urge of acquiring market share by early
production.

2UTILITARIAN ANALYSIS
Another error committed by Ford Motor Company was completely unethical as even
after testing the rear-end impact on the cars after the process of production; the company
ignored the failed results. The design of the model stationed the fuel tank in a risky position.
Even 20 miles per hour speed of a vehicle coming from the rear can damage the whole car by
getting it to burst in fire. Although, the company was not unknown of the consequences of the
failed test results, it did not restricted their decision of continuing with the same model
without attaching a baffle for safety. The company’s justification for this action was their
cost/benefit analysis in which they considered the cost of attaching the baffle would be more
than the expected risk without the baffle. Moreover, the company ignored the responsibility
of presenting an offer of selling baffle to the customers. The consequence of this action was
devastating as thirteen cars were reported in the collision due to rear-end accident in between
the year 1976 to 1977. Therefore, it can be understood that approach was against the theory
of Utilitarianism as it did not considered the happiness and safety of the mass (consumers) for
the benefit of cost (which constitute the small portion of ‘most’) involved in attaching the
waffle.
However, at the time of the Ford Pinto’s production, the National Highway Traffic
Safety Administration rear-end impact standard was not in practice, which restricted the
compulsion of the test. The company’s evaluation of costing can be one of the justifications
of not attaching the baffle even after the failed test results. The company’s aim was to offer
an affordable car to the consumers as well as to be able to compete with the Japanese
exported cars. The need for increasing the market share influenced the alteration of
production schedule.
Therefore, it can be concluded by the evaluation of the action through Utilitarian
analysis that the company’s decision of continuing with the same defected model, which was
prone to rear-end accidents, was morally wrong as well as does not comply with the
utilitarian approach. The company should have taken considerable amount of time in

3UTILITARIAN ANALYSIS
producing a car line to maintain the safety guidelines and even if the company could not bear
the cost of attaching the baffle for safety reason, they should have at least offered the
consumers of purchasing the baffle for the concern of ‘greatest number’.

4UTILITARIAN ANALYSIS
References:
Boutilier, Craig, et al. "Optimal social choice functions: A utilitarian view." Artificial
Intelligence 227 (2015): 190-213.
De George, Richard T. "Werhane’s Role in the Development of the Discipline of Business
Ethics: A Critical Appreciation." The Moral Imagination of Patricia Werhane: A
Festschrift (2018): 9-27.
Raam, D. Shree, M. Ponmutharasan, and R. Sayee Krishna. "A utilitarian approach on
reducing the accidents significantly using Internet of Things." 2016 Second
International Conference on Science Technology Engineering and Management
(ICONSTEM). IEEE, 2016.