The thing is that culturally you have to consider the point of Face.

If Mr. Toyoda is going to look bad by these decisions and also look bad by giving in, then there is no point in him giving in. Instead he will either double down or greyrock any opportunities to change direction.

Instead, Mr. Toyoda should be encouraged to keep the propaganda up for a year or two while they plan their all out Toyota EV invasion, blast Tesla out of Japanese airspace, and take market dominance in the country for EV vehicles.

He would look like a brilliant hero, Toyota would make billions, and the world becomes a better place, and it would have all been facilitated by a little dab of misdirection on his part.

People need to question whether Tesla bet on the wrong technology. No one is even asking that question; instead they are just assuming it is correct. Assumption often leads to disasters later on.