Plastic automotive engine
Version one was based on Ford's 2.3-liter Pinto engine and weighed (vs. for its cast iron counterpart). It was designed to produce at 9200 rpm. It was composed of metal cylinder sleeves, metal combustion chamber tops, metal piston crowns, bearings, valves and seats, and a stock 2.3L Pinto crankshaft. Nearly everything else in the engine, including the block, rods and piston skirts, were made of glass reinforced Polyamide-imide thermoplastic resins manufactured at the time by Amoco Chemicals Co. The engine was never installed in a vehicle.
Harley Copp
Before final sign-off of the 1972 Pinto, in April 1971 Harold MacDonald, Ford vice president of car engineering, chaired a product review meeting around a report from Ford engineers. The recommendation suggested deferring from 1974 to 1976 the incorporation into all Ford cars of either a shock absorbent "flak suit" to protect the fuel tank at a cost of $4 per car, or a nylon bladder within the tank at a cost of $5.25 to $8 per car. Agreeing to the decision would allow Ford to realize a savings of $10.9 million. MacDonald agreed to the report's recommendation, and hence left the Pinto exposed to rear-end collisions.