2003 Pontiac Aztek problems
The 2003 Pontiac Aztek has 188 complaints on file with NHTSA. The largest share (20%) concerns fuel system. After that come electrical system (15%) and brakes (11%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 188 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Fuel system 20% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 6 and 8
- Injuries and deaths
- 9 and 0
- Typical mileage
- 74,000 miles 122 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 | 22 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 11 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 17 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 20 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 16 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 8 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 13 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 7 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 7 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 0 |
| 200k+ miles | 1 |
What the data shows
Among the 122 complaints that report mileage, the typical (median) problem appeared at about 74,000 miles. For fuel system specifically, the median reported mileage is about 78,000 miles (29 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 6 complaints mention a crash; 8 complaints mention a fire; 9 injuries reported.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2003 ranks 2nd most-complained-about out of 5 model years of the Pontiac Aztek with enough data (123 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 3 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.
While driving 30MPH another vehicle ran through a stop light and collided with the consumer's vehicle. There was no time to depress the brakes. On impact neither of the frontal air bags deployed.
On 2/8/2004 consumer started the vehicle and turned the windshield wipers on. The windshield wipers stopped operating and began to smoke. The vehicle caught on fire due to a malfunction in the windshield wiper motor which was replaced by the dealer. Two weeks after being repaired the windshield wipers failed twice during inclement weather, causing poor visibility to the driver while on the highway. The vehicle had an electrical fire.
A few weeks ago the windshield wipers stopped working on my 2003 pontiac aztek, after shutting the vehicle off and restarting the vehicle the wipers began to work. Wednesday, november 24th, while driving in the rain my windshield wipers stopped working once again. While trying to shut the wipers on and off to correct the problem I noticed smoke coming from the dashboard, smoke then filled the passanger compartment.
Tl*the contact owns a 2003 pontiac aztec. The contact received a recall notice for NHTSA campaign id number 07v349000 (fuel system, gasoline:storage). Three weeks later, she smelled a strong odor of gasoline coming from the vehicle. The manufacturer informed her that she was sent the notice in error; therefore, the contact would be responsible for the repair costs. The vehicle has not been repaired. The failure and current mileages were 108,000.
Tl* the contact owns a 2003 pontiac aztek. The contact stated that the brakes did not always respond and needed to be applied repeatedly in order to function as normal. The contact also stated that the anti lock brake warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a repair shop, where faulty sensors where replaced; however the warning light remained illuminated. The vehicle was then taken to a dealer, who found a leak on the fuel injection system. The contact replaced the fuel injection system.