Pontiac Aztek

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GearheadTool

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Would like to hear your thoughts on this odd bird. Ive been viewing a certain AMC series on TV and the Aztek gets a fair amount of use. I am curious as to if this vehicle is any good! It has been berated as the ugliest, one of the stupidest, death knell for Pontiac GM vehicles and has also been equated with having an appearance similar to a BMW X6. I also notice the car in the show has an engine knock, suggesting the owner did never take care of it. I do not even know what engine was in this one, I know nothing of this car. That said, I may seek one out if it is a useful and good vehicle. I like its appearance more than I do not like its appearance.

All show references aside how does everyone like or dislike this vehicle that was supposed to be a Swiss Army knife of sorts as the Honda Pilot was supposed to be?
 
The pilot you mention is nearly as ugly anymore. Seems very functional, if funny looking.
 
That is my least favorite vehicle of all time. I'd rather drive a Yugo. Or a Gremlin.

You can get the same utility from a Subaru Forester, Jeep Grand Cherokee, or Ford Edge and still have a vehicle that is reasonably attractive and will hold a bit of value. I don't know which motor(s) were available in the Aztek and can't really comment on its reliability, but dang, that is one hideously ugly vehicle.

The only good thing about it is that you could probably get one for cheap. A quick glance at cars.com shows several used with 75k-90k miles for less than $6k.
 
I hear the rear differentials are trouble,and the 3.4 engine is nothing special (its the offspring of the old 1980 2.8V6,and the later 3.1).It and its cousin (Tiger Wood's former fave SUV) Buick Rendezvous were built off the Venture/Montana minivan platform.Nothing special there either.The AWD system (VersaTrak)is not even meant for off road driving,but added traction when the surface requires it.Pontiac started to die with their tribute to the Edsel,their 1968 full size line with vertical grille and downsweeping taillights.The Astre,Sunbird,and Phoenix finished the job.Why the public became so hot and bothered with the N body Grand Am (a Somerset/Calais/Corsica with plastic body cladding) is a mystery,but its the only thing that kept Pontiac alive thru the 80s and 90s.
 
This is helpful.

I was more interested in how it is on room, primarily rear seat. I had the privilege of being in a previous generation Honda Pilot (2008) and that was a very utilitarian vehicle. I would say comfy. It had room and it appears to be preferable to this amalgamation of minivans and engines called the Aztek. By the way, what year did it die?

It appears, like most SUV hybrids or their similar, to be a minivan if looked at closely.
 
What a POS! Lower intake gasket leaks are a guarantee on the 3.4L. Second biggest nightmare of a vehicle that we have sold a few of. Second only to the first generation Saturn Vue.
 
One of my aunts has an Aztec. It is a POS, though some of that is due to neglect.

It had the LIM failure. In the hands of my aunt, this is a death sentence for an engine. The one in the Aztec had to be replaced. It has also had a lot of suspension issues.

The interior is one of the ugliest GM has ever come up with, but it does function okay. It is a useful vehicle, but not really any more so than a minivan. You can fit a fair amount of stuff in it though.

It sucks to drive. Kind of wallowy and underpowered. It's not really any worse than a lot of minivans from that time period though.

And I don't know how much it costs to replace, but I bet the rear window could be a big problem if it broke.

If you want a really ugly minivan that gives up some of the functionality of an actual minivan, buy the Aztec.
 
Originally Posted By: hattaresguy
The day the last Aztek is crushed will be a good day for GM.


Agreed.

My sister, in a severe lapse of taste, bought one of these atrocities new. In yellow. It was butt ugly off the showroom floor. She still owns the thing. It's butt uglier now. Yuck.
 
Who cares what it looks like if it fits your needs to a "T"

Years ago a coworker bought a mint condition Caprice wagon; all of this friends ridiculed him and then months later wanted to borrow it for moving ladders and other such things...
 
Last edited:
Originally Posted By: simple_gifts
Who cares what it looks like if it fits your needs to a "T"



Exactly.

If the price is right and it's in a shape you're willing to accept, why not?

Obviously people jump all over the GM 3.x series for IMG issues. Once that's out of the way, that engine and 4T65E trans is difficult to kill. You'd have to be pretty ignorant to allow an IMG problem to lead to engine failure on a 3.x.

If this Aztek is AWD, I'd be inclined to stay away given issues and repair costs I've read about.

Joel
 
Originally Posted By: simple_gifts
Who cares what it looks like if it fits your needs to a "T"

Years ago a coworker bought a mint condition Caprice wagon; all of this friends ridiculed him and then months later wanted to borrow it for moving ladders and other such things...


The thing is the Aztek gives up some functionality in the name of looking ugly.

A Montana, Silhouette, or Venture is basically mechanically the same, but much more functional.
 
I don't think the Aztek is much uglier than it's sister, the Buick Rendezvous. They are both ugly. Tiger Woods appears in one Rendezvous commercial and all the sudden it wasn't as ugly.
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I could see it being viewed as "practical", but to me, it doesn't drive any better than a Pontiac Montana which is measurably more "practical".
 
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