No, this has nothing to do with a sales war between Toyota and other car manufacturers. The Toyota War is the name of a decisive battle that happened in Chad, Africa 3 years before the end of former president Hissène Habré’s rule.
Civil war began in Chad in 1978. It was a war that was well funded on both sides. Libya supported the Chadian rebels in northern Chad, while France, and to a lesser degree, the United States, supported the Hissène Habré led government.
Libya was under the control of dictator Muammar Gaddafi and desired to expand its’ territory and rule. Gaddafi claimed that Hissène Habré was not the rightful ruler of Chad.
Libya had been aligned with Chadian rebel leaders in northern Chad, supplying them with tanks, helicopters and airplanes, while the rebel leaders provided the bulk of the ground troops and an in depth knowledge of the mountainous terrain in northern Chad. France, on the other hand, stayed away from supplying troops or air support to the Chadian government.
Gaddafi established a formidable military base in northern Chad consisting of over 6,000 Libyan troops, helicopters and military jets. Along with the rebel ground troops, Gaddafi was ready to begin a major attack on Chadian forces.
That all changed in 1987, when one of the major Chadian rebel leaders had a falling out with the Libyan dictator. One of Libya’s greatest allies had now become it’s enemy. France decided it was time to act.
France provided the Chadian government with 400 Toyota trucks equipped with anti-tank weaponry. In addition, France decided to give Chadian troops air support, effectively grounding Libya’s helicopters and jets.
The Chadian government troops swept across the dessert in a bunch of Toyota truck and attacked the military base that had superior weapons and defense.
The small trucks were just too quick to defend against, and the Libyan troops were not expecting such a bold attack. Chad is said to have killed over a thousand Libyan troops and taken over 400 prisoners. Libya’s forces were in disorder and just trying to find a way to escape back into Libya. The war was essentially over.
The boldness and creativity of the Chadian forces is a story well known to the people of Chad and will be told for generations to come. It was the day when Chad changed the direction of a war by using Toyota trucks.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-13164690
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_War
https://www.carsguide.com.au/oversteer/the-toyota-war-is-a-thing-that-happened-58048