[3] On Bordinat's death in 1987, noted automotive journalist Paul Lienert described him as "urbane and polished" with a "droll wit and near photographic memory", and a "masterful manipulator, of the press, of his own designers, even of his superiors.
He received the Automotive Hall of Fame Distinguished Service Citation Award in 1977 and an honorary degree from the Art Center of Los Angeles.
[8] Though it had been finished and accepted, the book was under editing at the time of his death to accommodate a more "anti-Iacocca slant" as suggested by the publisher, of which Bordinat approved.
[7] In a 1984 interview, Bordinat related the story of his joining General Motors: During World War II he served as a supervisor at Fisher Body for tank production.
[12][13] presented the concept at the 1963 Detroit Auto Show as well as the 1964 New York World's Fair, and reportedly allowed Bordinat to use the two-seater as his personal car for more than a year.
[14][15] The fate of the Bordinat Cobra and Cougar II coupe remained largely unknown, until 2004, when a retired Ford designer, Jeff Burgy, tracked down their whereabouts, in storage at the Detroit Historical Museum.