Running head : Business Ethics Business Ethics Client ‘s Name University Affiliation Business Ethics 1 . Was Ford to blame in the Pinto Case ? The Ford Pinto case involves the question of ethical responsibility in ensuring that cars that become available in the market are safe for use of the people . This issue is relevant because it involves a person ‘s valuation of human life . In mid-1960s , Ford Motor Company , through its president , Arjay Miller , vowed to develop technology to ensure the safety of Ford cars . However , seven years thereafter , a Ford Pinto car figured in a car accident , and this accident led to the death of a woman and caused very severe injuries in a thirteen-year-old boy (Dowie ,1977 . The circumstances revolving around the development and manufacturing of the Ford Pinto cars would show that Ford Motor Company has responsibility over the fatality . The subject car was developed , designed , and manufactured when Japanese and other companies were competitively gaining a dominant share in the market of small cars . Thus , Ford Motor Company felt pressured to create a small car that could join in the competition (Wills , et al . Thus , in order to meet the demand and join the competition , Ford rushed the production of the Ford Pinto , at the expense of safety . In the natural course of business , producing a car usually takes about forty-three months . However , Ford rushed the production of the Pinto and completed everything in a very short span of twenty-five months . There was therefore deliberate haste in the production of the car , and this alone raises doubt in the adoption and following of appropriate procedures in the production of cars (Wills , et al . More importantly , Ford engineers made a finding to the effect that the car ‘s design had a major flaw . This flaw is in the fuel system of the Pinto model , which was found to be highly susceptible to rupturing ,which could easily lead to explosion (Wills , et al . Ford Motor Company ignored this flaw since the cars were already in the assembly line , and the car ‘s designer , Iacocca , imposed non-negotiable specifications .Thus , the company did not bother to correct the design and went ahead with production (Wills , et al . One moral philosophy that would support the position that Ford Motor Company was to blame would be Kant ‘s ethical philosophy . Kant ‘s theory placed emphasis on the categorical imperative , which he considered the supreme principle of morality (The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy . The categorical imperative , the ultimate moral principle for Kant , is the principle to guide all human actions . It requires compliance with the criteria that an action be rational , objective , and freely chosen (The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy . Kant ‘s theory is based on concepts of reason and duty . Subjective criteria are irrelevant . In the given case , the rule that it is acceptable to forego safety standards in the interest of profit could never pass the criteria provided by Kant . Reason would not support such a position , since it would lead to…