The Ford Pinto, introduced on September 11, 1970, was a subcompact car produced by Ford Motor Company until 1980, marking Ford's first North American entry into the subcompact market and also sold as the rebadged Mercury Bobcat. Developed under Ford President Lee Iacocca, the Pinto was rushed to market in just 25 months (compared to the industry average of 43), with strict goals of weighing under 2,000 pounds and costing under $2,000. It was a commercial success, with over 3 million units sold, outproducing domestic rivals like the Chevrolet Vega and AMC Gremlin. However, the Pinto became infamous in the 1970s for a severe safety controversy involving its fuel tank, which was prone to rupturing and catching fire in rear-end collisions, leading to deadly incidents and intense government scrutiny. This controversy turned the Pinto into a landmark case study in business ethics and tort reform, even though later analyses suggested its overall safety record was actually comparable to other subcompact cars of that era.