Why does Ford pinch pennies with their radiators?

[DeltaMustang65]

I apologize if this doesn't belong here, but since it's related to my '99 Taurus and not my '65 Mustang, I didn't know where to put it. Maybe somebody has had this problem with a Mustang...

Anywho...I was changing the fluids today, and all was going well. That was until it came time to tighten up the radiator draincock or whatever it's called. THE THING IS MADE OF PLASTIC!? And guess what, it broke off and I was being super careful with it.

Now, here's the question. As far as I can tell, the plastic part doesn't come all the way out. (That would make it too easy to replace, I suppose) Am I going to have to replace the ENTIRE radiator next time I want to change the fluids? Is the thing going to spring a leak at the most inconvenient time possible?

This is driving me insane. My '65 Mustang has a metal draincock, and they're completely removable to boot. Why would Ford see fit to save a few pennies and start using plastic ones? The Taurus is my daily driver, I need it to get to college and work, and now I'm worrying about it's reliability. What should I do?