autoevolution
 

Toyota Feared Its Most Regrettable User, the Taliban, Would Be Back

How much responsibility can or should a company take for how its products are being used? If said products are used to do harm but the company is not directly selling them to whoever is doing the harm, is the company still liable?
Toyota has banned resales of the new Land Cruiser in an attempt to keep it from ending up in terrorists' hands 6 photos
Photo: Toyota
Taliban convoys along the years, heavily featuring ToyotasTaliban convoys along the years, heavily featuring ToyotasTaliban convoys along the years, heavily featuring ToyotasTaliban convoys along the years, heavily featuring ToyotasToyota has banned resales of the new Land Cruiser in an attempt to keep it from ending up in terrorists' hands
Toyota is definitely not liable for terrorists’ seemingly undying love for its trucks, but it’s far from welcoming the association either. In a way, you could almost say the Japanese carmaker was prescient about the Taliban’s return to power in Afghanistan, and that they did their best to remove themselves from the very charged situation.

On August 15, 2021, the country’s capital Kabul fell, as Taliban forces returned after almost two decades of U.S.-allied occupation. With the Taliban’s return to power came back the one association Toyota would rather were not made: the fact that its trucks are not just for off-roading, but are actually used in warfare.

At the end of July, reports in local media in Japan claimed that those who had placed pre-orders for the new Land Cruiser 300 series were asked to sign an agreement stating they would not resell and export the car for at least one year after delivery. Failing to do so would land them in trouble, as well as the dealership that had provided them with the vehicle.

Taliban convoys along the years, heavily featuring Toyotas
Photo: Twitter / Long War Journal
Initial reports claimed that the move had to do with the carmaker’s desire to avoid overpricing on new vehicles, but the reality became apparent shortly afterward. Toyota issued a statement to say that the purpose of the agreement was to keep the new off-roaders from falling into hands that might pose “major threats to global security.” Meaning, terrorists.

Toyota didn’t want terrorists to end up driving the new trucks, because Toyota knew they had never stopped using the old ones. As Quartz points out, it could very well be that Toyota knew the Taliban were coming back to power and, in the process, unearth their most unfortunate association once more.

There’s a downside to making reliable, sturdy, economical cars that can be maintained easily and affordably: you can’t dictate or otherwise control who will end up using them. The Taliban have been using Toyota trucks for almost two decades to wage warfare because they’re perfect for the arid environment, they’re tough and imposing, spacious to carry anything from militia to weapons, and economical. And nothing Toyota did was ever able to put an end to the unsavory association.

Prior to the 9/11 attacks, which would lead to U.S. troops being rushed into Afghanistan to flush out Al-Quaeda, Toyota only exported one vehicle into Afghanistan in five years, a 1997 Land Cruiser. “Toyota does not have a sales or distribution channel in Afghanistan, and we do not export vehicles to that country,” the company said in a statement at the time.

Taliban convoys along the years, heavily featuring Toyotas
Photo: NBC.com
But seemingly the entire country drove Toyotas: Corolla for the civilians, and Hilux and Land Cruiser for the militia. Only the latter troubled Toyota deeply. When the Taliban took over Kabul in 1996, they did so from Toyota trucks, which had been smuggled into the country by way of Pakistan. The NY Times described it as a billion-dollar import-export scam that involved corrupt importers in Pakistan, who ordered trucks by the hundreds from Dubai and Kuwait and, during transit through Afghanistan, “lost” them as they “fell off the back” of carriers. It was a profitable business, allowing the Taliban to purchase very cheap, good-quality trucks, so no wonder they never stopped driving them.

“It is not our proudest product placement,” a Toyota spokesman remarked after a photo of Osama bin Laden flanked by Land Cruisers emerged in 2011. “But it shows that the Taliban are looking for the same qualities as any truck buyer: durability and reliability.” A disheartening statement, but an accurate one – and it stands the test of time. The Taliban remains Toyota’s most regrettable client.
If you liked the article, please follow us:  Google News icon Google News Youtube Instagram X (Twitter)
About the author: Elena Gorgan
Elena Gorgan profile photo

Elena has been writing for a living since 2006 and, as a journalist, she has put her double major in English and Spanish to good use. She covers automotive and mobility topics like cars and bicycles, and she always knows the shows worth watching on Netflix and friends.
Full profile

 

Would you like AUTOEVOLUTION to send you notifications?

You will only receive our top stories