(Probably because it’s the most popular truck.)
Automotive News reported that Toyota is cooperating with U.S. authorities in uncovering why members of the terrorist group ISIS seem to be so fond of Toyota Hiluxes and Land Cruisers, which consistently rank among the top 5 best-selling vehicles for many Middle Eastern countries, prompted by an investigation* by ABC News.
The automaker said the company forbids directly selling cars to paramilitary or terrorist organizations because of course it does. The company said it would be impossible to control indirect or illegal sales to terrorist organizations because of course it is.
ABC News hasn’t reached out to Ford to see how it controls sales of F-150 trucks to American drug cartels.
The Hilux and Land Cruiser consistently appear in propaganda for ISIS, which prompted officials from the U.S. Treasury to ask Toyota if it was directly supplying an armed conflict in the Middle East with trucks. Haaretz reports:
“Regrettably, the Toyota Land Cruiser and Hilux have effectively become almost part of the ISIS brand,” said Mark Wallace, a former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, who is CEO of the Counter Extremism Project, a non-profit working to expose the financial support networks of terror groups.
According to Automotive News, Toyota officials said it has “procedures and contractual commitments in place to help prevent our products from being diverted for unauthorized military use.”
ABC News reported that based on what they saw on “Top Gear” once, Toyota Hilux pickups are pretty tough and probably reliable based on a series of “tests”.
Toyota trucks have a rich and varied history in countries where they are sold. In some places they’re used for hauling things, in other places they’re sold for going places too.
The automaker said it would end delivery to networks if it discovered those trucks were going to ISIS members.
*ABC News showed up with cameras and microphones to a Toyota dealer meeting once.
“Toyota trucks have a rich and varied history in countries where they are sold. In some places they’re used for hauling things, in other places they’re sold for going places too.”
Give this man the Pulitzer!
Seriously though, do people in mass-market media ever just stare at the ground and sigh at what their job has become?
The lines. You should read between them.
One of the funniest/most sarcastic/snarkiest articles I’ve read lately–and a great break from “The VAG Chronicle” installments.
Nicely done!
@BBall,
There appears to be Three Hezbollahs, or Hizbollah. Main Group in Lebanon, with thousands of missiles, includes the new Pantsyr anti- aircraft missile system. . Then.we have Khatib Hezbollah,based in Iraq, the ones with the Abrahams. Lastly a separate group in Iran
“[…] why members of the terrorist group ISIS seem to be so fond of Toyota Hiluxes and Land Cruisers, which consistently rank among the top 5 best-selling vehicles for many Middle Eastern countries […]”
It takes being in government to not instantly understand the connection there, I guess.
They’re popular, capable, and durable.
*Obviously* a paramilitary organization sourcing from the used market is going to flock to them.
Maybe all of those Unintended Acceleration cases got back to ISIL. UA is handy if you suspect your suicide bomber is going to chicken out…. just sayin”
Well that didn’t work!
TTAC, gimme more text editing options so I can parse my comments to give better sarcasm cues.
Anyway, short answer long; Aaron’s sarcasm deserves a Pulitzer, people at ABC News could stand a little introspection.
There was even a war named after these trucks.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_War
@Jeff S,
Not a problem getting a new Hilux in the ME,as much a problem.as getting a F150 in the US
“Terrorists” to whom—The U.S.? Russia? Turkey?
“Terrorists” WHEN? Beforr or AFTER “we” in the “west” armed them, before blowback, during proxy wars?
Oh yeah…
I JUST WENT THERE.
Terrorism is a tactic, so it don’t matter much who’s the target. Though in ISIS’ case, the target is mostly “local civilians”.
(Terrorism: The tactic of influencing policy or demanding obedience via the use of attacks on civilian targets, specifically ones designed to cause terror of further attacks in response [thus the name].
Blowing up US troops with IEDs is not terrorism – they’re a legitimate war target; shooting every civilian who sings a song because you think music insults God, and thus you want to intimidate them all into stopping, *is*.)
You went there, but you don’t know what you’re talking about in either statement, so … try not going there again?
The same (last paragraph) could be said for all of his posts,especially those concerning “Suburbans and extended-length Tahoes”.
SoHo Cadillac has completely failed to terrorize BMW, Mercedes, or Audi, let alone Lexus.
JdN needs to declare a jihad.
Can we declare a fatwa against misusing the word terrorist?
The U.S. & its current allies (soon to be ex-allies) could let some Chevy Colorados “walk” into the hands of ISIS/ISIL as a sensible counter-insurgency strategy.
Parts would break & fall off traversing even moderately rugged roads, they’d constantly break down, and then, refuse to start when the AC130s show up.
No modifications from the factory required!
When will the “Comb Over in Chief” demand an investigation and the expulsion of all Japanese car companies from the USA?
This is stupid.
If war broke out in the USA or Canada we’d see HD pickups as the most common weapons platform just because they are the most common.
How about investigating how an American plumber’s truck ended up as a weapon’s platform?
http://www.islamicinvitationturkey.com/2014/12/18/us-plumber-threatened-after-his-truck-used-by-terrorists-in-syria/
Oh. I thought it was funny and well written. I think it is stupid to wonder why a common vehicle is used in armed conflict.
Here’s what leadership looks like: Let’s force ISIS to build a yuge wall to prevent Toyota trucks from being imported into ISIS controlled land.
Ha, Comb-over in Chief. Great new Trump line!
Do us all a favor and leave your 15 watt political commentary out of this, okay?
Okay, glad we can agree.
…
“The ISIS brand”?
It’s all about “The Brand”.
@Lou_BC
I thought it was a first of April Joke, by the US Government, , that had been badly timed
RobertRyan – it had to go through all of those committees first
Before long, they’ll have boutique stores filled with fragrances, holograms of their products, and a wide assortment of products.
They’re really trying to be a “Lifestyle Brand”
What do they sell? Infidel heads and a spot in heaven?
That sounds a little bit like the Church before the Reformation.
Um…. right wing and or religious extremism has a lot in common regardless of facial hair and head gear.
Like DeadWeight……….
Oh yeah…
I (WE) JUST WENT THERE.
Chop now and we’ll throw in some extra virgins for free!
28-Cars-Later –
Jumped in head first on that one
Ouch. Next time wear a helmet.
Only on TTAC can you actually find people gleaning humor from ISIS.
God bless this site!
FreedMike – try hanging out with ER nurses and Parmedics
Or the guys who drive the Coroner’s Vans……
Talk about gallows humor .
-Nate
-Nate – I’ve spent most of my career trying to keep patient’s away from those guys ;)
Oh, the stories! I know a former ER nurse – buy one a drink sometime and be amazed.
Real-life story: man puts canned tunafish oil on his unit to get his cat to . . . (you can finish the story yourself, but it ends at the ER).
redmondjp – it is amazing what sorts of things people end up “losing” in various orifices.
or misadventures with a shop vac………..
Sometimes I buy the Tuna in Oil (instead of water) by accident. I try to pawn it off on the cat, and the oil is enough to keep him away from his favorite food.
Could you just wash it off, and then eat it or give to cat?
LOU : ” -Nate – I’ve spent most of my career trying to keep patient’s away from those guys ;)” .
Indeed .
that’s why the stories are so good ~ better than the Police and Tow Truck Drivers typically .
What I want to know is : after a fire with bodies (you have to see it to believe how bad this is,why they carry knives) why the hell do they (the Coroners) always want to go _EAT_ ?! .
-Nate
“ABC News hasn’t reached out to Ford to see how it controls sales of F-150 trucks to American drug cartels.”
Uh, they just go and buy them in Mexico or the US. It’s not like they are set up as a fleet customer at a Ford dealership under the name “Sinaloa Cartel”. There are plenty of people and businesses that launder drug money and buy trucks.
A word of warning for those traveling in Mexico: DO NOT drive through Mexico in a Crew Cab truck. Someone will want it way more than you do.
The same way ISIS buys the Toyotas
Pretty much. They ain’t using Toyota Financial Services for a loan under the business name “Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant DBA Abu’s Construction”.
“Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant DBA Abu’s Construction”.
HA.
+100
This is probably germane:
http://downtrend.com/donn-marten/just-where-did-isis-get-all-of-those-toyota-pickup-trucks?utm_source=fnot3&utm_medium=facebook
It wouldn’t be surprising to find out that some of the trucks used by ISIS were stolen vehicles from Canada and the US.
also somewhat surprised at the lack of Peugeots and Land Rovers – I thought those two vehicles were also desert transportation of choice.
” It’s not like they are set up as a fleet customer at a Ford dealership under the name “Sinaloa Cartel”.”
+1…LOL
I wonder which of the three Top Gear presenters ISIS finds more offensive.
All I remember from my time all over Afghanistan and Iraq is that the Hilux was king.
That there is a some direct connection between the manufacturer and AK-47 toting terrorists is ridiculous.
Yep. During my two tours of Afghanistan, I spent many an hour in one Hilux or another. What we (the US government) paid to lease those things should have been labeled a war crime. I am sure that what we left behind quickly made it out to the general Afghani public.
They are just as popular in Saudi Arabia. I lost count of how many white, red-trimmed Hilux were out there terrorizing the streets (I can’t bring myself to call what they do “driving” over there). At least in Saudi, I was driving a Tahoe…
Yeah, spent my fair share of time in Riyadh too :)
Driving in Saudi Arabia was experience for sure.
Ah, yes…the famed “Saudi Sweep!” Glad to find another who escaped “eskantraz!”
So terrorists like reliable and capable off road vehicles too whooda thunk? Must be a slow news day.
“ABC News reported that based on what they saw on “Top Gear” once, Toyota Hilux pickups are pretty tough and probably reliable based on a series of “tests”.”
Where was this? Just looked in the ABC article and the Automotive News article – not there. Nor were the terms “tough,” “reliable,” or “Top Gear,” “test,” or “tests.”
In the ABC News video spot, they open with clips from Top Gear’s Hilux torture episodes.
Righto. I don’t watch attached videos to articles like that. Thanks.
Corey D- you no like watching the failed efforts of Top Gear’s attempts at trying to kill the HiLux?
That episode is glorious. A thousand lashes for ABC News for smiting Toyota with this bologna.
Slow times at the ol’ news desk.
I just don’t watch news videos as the vapid nature puts me off. Here’s 45 seconds of intro and fluff for a 6 second bit of information!
Also, no sound at work anyway.
I thought Hilux torture was outlawed by the Geneva convention.
I’d imagine HiLux is practically a martyr in the eyes of ISIS and their other terrorist group cohorts.
Meanwhile, back at the ranch (in the good ol’ US of A), I’ve seen what seems to be a surge in early to late 80’s Toyota pickup ownership popularity amongst rural residents here in Missouri. I’ve been seeing them more and more in the back country as of late.
And for the record- who doesn’t appreciate all things Land Cruiser? They’re highly regarded in Iraq; yet, the uppity’s in the highest income-per-capita areas around here in St. Louis certainly seem to approve, as well.
Sketchy, indeed! (/sarc)
ABC news believes that Top Gear is a reliable source of automotive data?
wow, they are more F^cked up than I thought.
It’s likely this isn’t the first time ABC has used the BBC for material.
NO… as Top Gear pointed out many, many times, they are a factual news program, they even got an award for it:
http://www.topgear.com/car-news/top-gear-tv/tg%E2%80%99s-won-guinness-world-record
I assume the same goes for Fox news.
What should they (ISIS) be driving- rather, representing?
A western-made Silverado? That makes for some great “Death to America and all western society as we know it” PR. Just sayin’.
Lol! It was said that Taliban Commander’s, Mullah Omar, truck of choice was a Chevy. I can’t remember which model was specifically mentioned. Tahoe? Suburban?
Probably a Suburban LTZ.
A Subturban? or was that a Freudian slip on my part?
I would think the Avalanche/Escalade EXT with the flip-down rear compartment would provide some defense against tailgaters.
“What should they (ISIS) be driving- rather, representing?”
A 1995 Hyundai from a BHPH lot.
I know the 2016 Tacoma has a Go Pro mount for a camera on the windshield. Maybe those Mid East Tacomas have an M60 mount in the bed?
Besides, when you are in a hurry to torture and persecute someone, the last thing you want is to break down on the side of the road. Apparently rugged, dependable trucks are valued there too.
I wonder if terrosists set around aruging why a mid-size truck is being used when you can get a full size truck for similar money? Maybe that’s just an internet thing.
Naw, an M60 mount is useless for an RPK or PKM anyway.
They roll their own mounts, usually adapted from the original tripod.
I was going to say, “M60? WTF?” In addition to the PKM, I’d add the 12.7mm DShK and even 14.5mm KPVT machine guns. The latter is truly a beast, with double the muzzle energy of a .50 cal gun.
Even the US doesn’t really use the problematic M60 anymore. Although I’ve used the various Soviet machine guns, mostly the PK, I’m still partial to the 240B. Probably because that’s what I deployed with.
No terrorist wishes to be Found On Road Dead before his time.
Yeah, this’ll distract everyone from the fact that the U.S. accidentally bombed a hospital the day prior.
To be fair, the Nobel Peace Prize winner did call up the Nobel Peace Prize winner to apologize for bombing them.
Clearly ISIS (or ISIL, if you live in DC) hasn’t kept up to date. Try Mazda if you want a car prewired to burn and explode in true jihadi fashion.
My coworker drives a crew cab Tacoma.
Perhaps he should be interrogated and placed under surveillance?
Oh boy. I am now concerned for my safety.
When asked by ABC news why they were not using cars, like a VW diesel Passat, the terrorists responded: “We don’t mind cutting off heads or mutilating girls, but we draw the line at driving vehicles that do not comply with clean air standards.”
“We’re not savages” they added.
What if VW could put said terrorist in a brand new Passat for $229/month, AND throw in free weatherproofing?
If the terrorists were driving VAG products the war would already have been over by now.
diesel smoke would make them too easy to spot
ISIS should really be using minivans too, but they’re probably overly concerned about what the other terrorist organizations will think of them.
http://toyota.jp/isis/
The US government isn’t interested in terrorist vehicle tastes, but in how ISIS is able to acquire so many of them with the OEM supposedly not knowing about it. Obviously, it would be helpful if the pipeline could be cut off or reduced.
How is Toyota supposed to stop sympathizers from buying trucks? Especially since they’re likely purchasing (extremely popular and common) vehicles from the secondary market?
I don’t know. But it would be worth seeing whether it is possible.
Since it took them forever to find a terrorist leader with renal failure on hemodialysis I’m sure that they will have a hard time sorting this one out.
Maybe they just weren’t looking very hard.
28-Cars-Later – there is merit to that comment. If I was getting paid large sums of money to find a guy I’d probably ride that train for as long as possible.
Indeed.
More of a concern is how ISIS is getting US armoured vehicles and Tanks, that is a REAL concern. One of the Terrorist groups fighting ISIS and Al Queda ,called Hezbollah , had Abraham Tanks,being pulled by their original transporters
From the Iraqis. They have a number of them but apparently can be overtaken by 30 guys in Hiluxes. They can’t do $hit with them though. Good luck finding the amount of cash required to run and fire one. Also, the export Abrams isn’t as good. Plus, the thing that ties everything together is the American tanker crew and battalion. Always, and I mean always, buy the drinks for your tanker friends. They can get you out of jams.
+1
We really should be more careful about giving weapons to our “friends” in that part of the world. Seems like they agree to kill some mutual enemies for us, then once that’s done, turn the guns around and start killing us with it. It’s only been happening for the last 40 years, the memo must be lost in the mail.
Well it was a waste of money giving the Iraqis Abrams tanks, but Hezbollah isn’t going to do dick with them. Even in the videos they posted, they were towing the tanks. They can’t afford to drive them around, let alone use them operationally.
I’m guessing a lot are actually stolen from legitimate owners.
“how ISIS is able to acquire so many of them with the OEM supposedly not knowing about it”
Akio and his right wing buddies.
It’s but a small step from shinto hachimakis to islamist head rags.
This reads a lot like a Sniff Petrol article (that’s a good thing). But the picture should be captioned, “A Toyota Hilux, yesterday”.
It’s so cute that ABC thinks these trucks were purchased. Many, if not most, were probably acquired after 6 guys, with AKs still smoking, thanked the widow of the previous owner for her generous donation to the cause.
Off topic, but given the haggling culture prevalent in the Middle East, I’d love to be a fly on the wall come negotiation time at the dealership.
Oh man, two opportunities for Monty Python references in the same thread!
She turned me into a newt!
…and neither of them involved Holy Grail!
The first was the “religious extremism” remark that could’ve easily led into a Spanish Inquisition reference, and here we could’ve quoted the haggling scene from Life of Brian.
If she floats, then she’s a witch.
Breaking News from ABC.
Research has shown that in the last decade a total of 0 fatal car crashes have involved 1958 Rolls Royce Silver Wraiths, making it the safest car in America.
That only a dozen exist, and most get driven fewer than 200 miles per year was not a factor in this study.
That’s pretty much how “journalism” is today. But then, the public laps up every word, so who’s really to blame?
Completely off topic but I just booked ten laps in a Ferrari F430 Scuderia and Porsche 911 Carrera S in Vegas. Hopefully I will survive :)
I just booked 150,000 laps in my ’03 Buick.
The Church approves.
It comes down the access of spares and maintenance, along with the perceived view that Toyota’s are a better product.
We have the same here in the Australian Outback. Toyota rules. Why? Because you can procure spares easier, much easier than most any other vehicle.
As for where they are buying the Toyota’s? Well, anywhere there a large town, in many countries surrounding the region of conflict.
In any military operation the maintenance of your hardware is a necessity. To may variants will reduce capability. It’s far better to keep “brands” to a minimum.
Al, do you do any wrenching?
I got an old 1996 Camry and what I’ve been finding out is Toyota seems to design it’s cars so they can be easily repaired. My 1990 f250 is much more annoying to work on in comparison.
Maybe the ISIS had beheaded everyone in the local GM/Ford/Chrysler dealership due to previous dissatisfaction. Only Toyota survived. That must be it.
Everyone the world over, including ISIS members, long ago quit using the phrase “the Cadillac of” to ascribe excellence (or even decent, quality attributes) to weaponry or anything else.
How about this plumber from Texas who trades in his F-150 only to later see the truck in the hands of ISIS:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2876735/How-plumber-s-truck-Texas-ended-hands-Islamic-fighters-lines-Syria.html
ABC Special Report: pedophiles prefer plain white vans. Ford, GM and Dodge investigated. More at 10.
It’s just a subtle reminder, some of the dumbest fukks around, breezed through college and up the corporate chain or federal gov. chain of comand. Scary, in a way.
Go back 14 years ago when the U.S. and its allies invaded Afghanistan. There were a couple of stories about the Taliban’s use and the popularity of the Toyota Hi-Lux pickup and Land Cruiser in the region. All they mentioned that the vehicles were durable and could handle the terrain, no mention of where the money came to buy them. After all it is a country with a semi-functioning economy so yes people have cash or credit and buy trucks and other products.
I don’t think there were any stories looking into the financing of the Ford Falcon’s used by Argentinean military death squads in the 70’s and 80’s or the ever present Jeep Grand Wagoneer’s with extra dark window tint favored by El Salvador’s ARENA party death squads in the 80’s.
Now that NSA has caught all of you discussing terrorism online, don’t be surprised if you have trouble catching your next flight.
I do not know how tough these Hilux trucks are but they do use a lot of spark plugs due to oil burning. Years ago when the Taliban was just starting out one of my export shippers received a request from a Toyota dealer in Saudi Arabia. They were looking for spark plugs for older Hilux trucks and Toyota could not supply them because they were no longer made and stocked. Well my shipper finally made a deal to have the plugs manufactured again and that he would buy a 40 ft container of plugs to make the deal worthwhile. You can guess how many plugs it would take to fill a 40 ft Hi Cube container. As the various news outlets were showing pictures of the Taliban driving across the desert with these old Hilux trucks i had a general idea where these plugs were going. I refused to handle and book the shipment and told my shipper to book with another freight forwarder. I value my license more then his business. He did find a forwarder who moved the plugs to Saudi Arabia and knowing Saudi Arabia those plugs made it to those old Hilux trucks. Funny thing was this same Toyota dealer offered to sell Toyota parts to various Toyota dealers in the states for 50% less then Toyota charges the U S dealers. It seems Toyoda sells parts cheap in Saudi Arabia to try and crush GM. For some countries Business is business regardless who is fighting. Imported many containers from Saudi Arabia to the USA but that is another story.
The Hilux and 70 series Land Cruiser are not sold in the U.S. However, they are sold in the rest of the world. Both are basic, heavy duty 4×4 utility trucks that are built tough and last forever. Just what an aspiring army needs to get around in a sand box.
Meanwhile, Australia can’t figure out where 8,000 Toyota trucks have disappeared to.
This is purely a distraction tactic by our feds to make it look like they are fighting the enemy on all fronts. Yawn…
My ’05 100 Series Land Cruiser is a far superior ride to the 70 series. Shows how much those ISIS guys know!
Does GAP insurance cover damage by hellfire missiles.
I wonder if Toyota gives ISIS/Taliban fleet discount. Most of these Hiluxes and Land Cruises come in white and are similarly equipped. This gives a new meaning to Toyota’s advertising slogans “Going Places” and “Oh What a Feeling.” The ISIS edition comes standard with a gun mount in the bed.
Let me elaborate what they are saying.
We all know that cars get shipped to developing countries if it still have life in them but not yet dead enough for the crusher. In Toyota’s case most of their cars fit the bill because they are so damn reliable. So a lot of Toyotas get flooded to continent already. Most of these car would likely come from Japan because they get rid of cars so quickly.
On top of that they use the same architecture, technologies and components. This makes parts interchangeable. you can pretty much pull something out of a 90s vehicle and it would still fit in a recent model so you spend less time looking for the right part when the models are so compatible.
http://www.reactiongifs.us/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/picard_clapping.gif
Japan does have mandatory inspections when a vehicle gets old enough that requires a vehicle of a certain age to be completely torn down. It would make sense that some of these Toyotas would be sold oversees to ISIS and the Taliban. There would be plenty of life in these vehicles and much less expensive than buying all new.
ISIS: “We don’t drive BMWs because we’re not A-holes.”
From Fallon on The Tonight Show 10-9-15