2001 Pontiac Aztek problems
The 2001 Pontiac Aztek has 329 complaints on file with NHTSA. The largest share (15%) concerns electrical system. After that come fuel system (12%) and brakes (9%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 329 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Electrical system 15% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 24 and 9
- Injuries and deaths
- 28 and 0
- Typical mileage
- 51,000 miles 168 complaints with mileage
Source: NHTSA owner complaints
Where the complaints are
Share of this model year's complaints by the part of the car involved. One complaint can name more than one part, so the shares can add up to more than 100%.
When problems show up
View the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 0k to 20k miles | 35 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 22 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 43 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 24 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 19 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 6 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 8 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 6 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 3 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 2 |
| 200k+ miles | 0 |
What the data shows
Among the 168 complaints that report mileage, the typical (median) problem appeared at about 51,000 miles. For electrical system specifically, the median reported mileage is about 69,000 miles (24 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 24 complaints mention a crash; 9 complaints mention a fire; 28 injuries reported.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2001 ranks 1st most-complained-about out of 5 model years of the Pontiac Aztek with enough data (236 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 5 safety recall campaigns.
What owners wrote
A few complaints as filed, shortened and with personal details removed. The first ones are among the most serious reports for this model year; the rest are typical.
Front crash against a solid corner of a building, aprox speed crash 45 MPH. GM did not want to repair or replaced, instead faced a trial where they committed a fraud and other felonious, all of them proven, still after nearly 9 years still facing civil and criminal charges. GM dealer with false statement still now a days keeps the vehicle, same that still can be analyzed now a days because it has not been repaired. Lots of damage caused by GM, dealers, lawyers and expert witnesses.
On 01/05/2002 I rear-ended a 1999 cadillac deville going approximately 40MPH. Upon impact, my airbags did "not" deploy and my seatbelt did not hold me from hittig the steering wheel with my chest. I had reported to the dealer that I didn't think the seatbelts in the front were working correctly not more than two weeks after purchase. He convinced me that these were newer seatbelts that do not react as sensitive as the older model vehicles.
When I purchased my astek in july 2001, it was brand new since I have had it I have had brake problems , a wheel bearing has went out, my alignment was set wrong, I needed to get brand new tires, and my transmission is now out and its not under warranty due to high mileage. I will be investigating. And now it is sitting until I can afford $2000.00 for a transmission or I can get this resolved.
After arriving home from work, I followed my normal routine: parking in my driveway, cutting off the engine and removing the key before exiting the vehicle; however, I could not remove the key from the ignition switch. No matter what I attempted it would not budge. My adult son also tried to remove the key from the ignition switch with no success. The key was stuck in the 2nd position-- meaning that the vehicle was still "on" just not running. I left it as it was with my key stuck in the ignition.