diff --git a/toolchain/toolchain-external/toolchain-external.mk b/toolchain/toolchain-external/toolchain-external.mk
index 2722600511..e2e99538ab 100644
--- a/toolchain/toolchain-external/toolchain-external.mk
+++ b/toolchain/toolchain-external/toolchain-external.mk
@@ -348,6 +348,14 @@ TOOLCHAIN_EXTERNAL_SITE = $(dir $(call qstrip,$(BR2_TOOLCHAIN_EXTERNAL_URL)))
 TOOLCHAIN_EXTERNAL_SOURCE = $(notdir $(call qstrip,$(BR2_TOOLCHAIN_EXTERNAL_URL)))
 endif
 
+# In fact, we don't need to download the toolchain, since it is already
+# available on the system, so force the site and source to be empty so
+# that nothing will be downloaded/extracted.
+ifeq ($(BR2_TOOLCHAIN_EXTERNAL_PREINSTALLED),y)
+TOOLCHAIN_EXTERNAL_SITE =
+TOOLCHAIN_EXTERNAL_SOURCE =
+endif
+
 TOOLCHAIN_EXTERNAL_INSTALL_STAGING = YES
 
 ifeq ($(BR2_TOOLCHAIN_EXTERNAL_BLACKFIN_UCLINUX_2012R1)$(BR2_TOOLCHAIN_EXTERNAL_BLACKFIN_UCLINUX_2012R2),y)