Owners have filed 411 complaints on the Pontiac Aztek, covering 2001–2005. The system named most often is Fuel System (74 reports). Worst years by volume: 2001, 2003, 2002; cleanest: 2005, 2004, 2002. 16 reports describe a crash, 10 a fire. On average the car was 4.6 years old when the problem happened.
What breaks on Pontiac Aztek
Grouped by the system owners named — percentages are shares of all 411 Aztek complaints. Open any row for the full reports in owners' own words.
Fuel System 74 Read
Car caught on fire and totalled my car. My home almost burned to the ground
Fuel level indicator erratic with half tank or less. When this occurs and the vehicle is moving downhill, it stalls. Dealer replaced fuel sender and/or pump assembly. Same thing happened 9 days later
My 2005 pontiac aztec fuel gauge has quit working properly. I never know when I start the vehicle if it will work or not. It may show empty it may go past empty and sometimes it working properly. I have done some research and the seems to be a problem with all aztecs
Service Brakes 47 Read
While proceeding down a steep hill in northeren pa the ABS failed and the pontiac aztek began to fishtail as though on ice. It had two frontal impacts and the airbags did not deploy
Lost brakes and engine fire ensued. Dealer said brake line broke ,unknown cause
Gradual loss of braking due to a leak in the brake line. Brake fluid from the leaking brake line dripped on catalytic converter causing a fire. The brake line was reconstructed by a licensed mechanic. No damage to any other part of the car
Electrical System 47 Read
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…
2003 pontiac aztek.....events leading to failure- flickering lights, unusual odor. Smoke in the interior of the automobile coming from under driver's seat. Within minutes, flames came through the middle of the driver's seatand automobile became engulfed in flames, vehicle was destroyed. It was unsalvable
2003 pontiac aztec, caught on fire and the vehicle had been sitting 14 hours I only had the aztec for just about 2 weeks, the fire starting under the hood in an electrical box the SUV was a total, mean while I lost my down payment of 1,000 and is still left with out transportation the insurance company paid off the…
Engine And Engine Cooling 42 Read
The contact owns a 2001 pontiac aztek. The contact stated that the air conditioner was not working. The vehicle also began emitting smoke, but the failure was repaired. The dealer diagnosed the cause of failure as electrical. The purchase date and failure mileage were unknown. The current mileage is 72,000. Updated…
I would like to enter a complaint about a defective engine, 3.4 liter v-6, on a 2005 pontiac aztek. This car has a blown head gasket with 36,130 miles on it. I am being quoted $1100 for repairs, and there is no way a car with this type of mileage should be needing this type of repair. This vehicle is/was in mint…
Vehicle stalled while driving. Dealership replaced the fuel pressure regulator, but the failure recurred
Suspension 38 Read
The contact owns a 2005 pontiac aztek. While driving 1-60 mph, the vehicle pulled to the left and he heard a grinding sound coming from the front of the vehicle. As of april 18, 2008, the dealer had not inspected the vehicle. The contact inspected the vehicle and notice the lug nuts were discolored and the wheels were…
On april 17, 2006, I brought my 2004 aztek in to the pontiac dealer because there was a loud grinding noise and vibration coming from under the front passenger side of my vehicle. I was told that the front right wheel bearing was failing, and that it had to be replaced. Since it was just out of warranty, at 63,031…
I own (2) aztek's, a 2002 and a 2004. I received a letter in sept 06 stating that there is an issue with front bearings wearing prematurely on 2002 aztek's. The letter stated that they will replace any defective bearings within (5) years of date of purchase or 60,000 miles, whichever occurs first. Since my 2002 aztek…
Power Train 27 Read
Consumer stated the output bearing was the cause of the drive shaft overeating, which then separated from the vehicle starting a roadside fire
The driver was ejected from vehicle, in a rollover. The driver was properly restrained, and sustained injury. *ak the consumer stated the transaxle failed. *jb the vehicle suddenly swerved off of the road and rolled. The seat belt locking device did not lock, and the front-side air bags did not deploy
The contact owns a 2001 pontiac aztec. The vehicle was locked in the park position. The contact read the owner's manual and attempted to release the vehicle through the cupholder as instructed. She could not do so on the driver's side and went to the passenger side instead. She was able to release the lock and was on…
Fuel/propulsion System 18 Read
I purchased this car used. When I first purchased it, I smelled an strong odor of gas/fuel. When I researched the car on the internet, the search revealed there was a recall on the fuel system of the 2005 pontiac aztek. After reading more in detail about the recall, the search found that the fuel pressure regulator…
The contact owns a 2005 pontiac aztek. The contact discovered that the entire fuel system was corroded and leaked fuel. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed that the fuel filler neck fractured. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate…
My 2004 pontiac aztec rally edition has a leak in the fuel tank. The dealership is telling me that it is not on recall. I see recalls on the system. Need to know why my model has not been recall
Steering 16 Read
2003 pontiac aztec, 75,000 miles with no symptoms blew tie rod causing car to swerve due to lack of brakes and steering and flipped into ravine
While driving at highway speeds, the steering had become inoperative, causing loss of vehicle control. (vehicle rolllover) driver sustained and injury. *ak *jb the driver/passenger seat belts were inoperative and the air bags did not deploy
The contact stated while turning the steering wheel left or right and while driving any speed there is a knocking sound coming from the steering. This does not affect the steering ability of the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to dealer on three occasions for this problem. The first occasion february 28, 2006 the…
Aztek years to avoid — and the clean ones
Complaints per model year. More reports usually means more cars on the road as well as more trouble, so read the crash and fire columns alongside the count.
| Model year | Complaints | Top system | Crashes | Fires |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Air Bags | 1 | — | |
| 2004 | Air Bags,seat Belts,seats | 2 | — | |
| 2003 | Air Bags | 2 | 5 | |
| 2002 | Air Bags,engine | 2 | — | |
| 2001 | Air Bags | 9 | 5 |
The same model year, different builds
Every complaint carries the first 11 characters of the VIN — plant, year, body and engine. That is a production series, and complaints are spread across them very unevenly.
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Distinct production series | 112 |
| Average complaints per series | 3.7 |
| Worst single series | 18 complaints |
| Average age at failure | 4.6 years |
A model average of 3.7 hides a worst series at 18. Enter a VIN above to see the numbers for that exact build instead of the model as a whole.
Owners reported these. Find out if yours is one of them.
- Complaints matched to the exact production run, not just the model
- What the car is worth given what tends to fail on it
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How we count
Every figure here comes from complaints owners filed with NHTSA — 1,100,006 of them, covering 1,982 models built between 1981 and 2026.
A complaint is an unverified report: someone wrote down what happened to their car. It is not a confirmed defect and not a recall. What makes the volume useful is the pattern — when thousands of owners of the same build describe the same failure, that is a signal no marketing brochure will give you.
Two things we do that the source does not. First, we compute the age of the car at the moment of failure from the incident date and the model year. Second, we group complaints by the first 11 characters of the VIN — the production series — so a bad plant run does not disappear into a model-wide average.
Frequently asked questions
What are the worst years for the Aztek?
By complaint volume, 2001, 2003, 2002 drew the most owner reports. Bear in mind that popular years put more cars on the road, so check the crash and fire columns too.
Which Aztek years are the cleanest?
2005, 2004, 2002 have the fewest complaints on file. For recent years that can simply mean the cars are young.
How many complaints does the Pontiac Aztek have?
411 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, covering 2001–2005. Of those, 16 describe a crash and 10 a fire.
Are these complaints verified?
No. They are unverified reports from owners. NHTSA publishes them as filed and investigates only a fraction. The value is in the pattern, not in any single report.
Can I check complaints for one specific car?
Yes — enter its VIN above. We match the first 11 characters, which identify the plant, year, body and engine, so you get complaints on that exact production series rather than the whole model.