Comments: 1-15, 16-30, 31-45, 46-47
I have a 2001 Aztek AWD that I purchased used in 2002. I love it more than any other vehicle I have ever owned. I have a fantastic dealer I buy all my vehicles from and they take good care of me.
The only problems I have had were the peeling rear lights (replaced in good faith since the warranty had just expired) and a couple weeks ago my eyeglass holder broke (the little clip that hooks up in it, plastic of course, broke) cost me 37.00 just for the little door (this was dealer cost they gave me) and the driver lumbar knob broke so had to fix that and now just 4 days later it has come off. I get very, very upset and don't have time to keep running to dealer 30 miles away everyday.
Does anyone know if its possible to just permanently seal the lumbar knob inside, I have never used it or touched it and don't even need it, but my Aztek looks junky when you open the door and see that knob missing.
Other than that little inconvenience, my Aztek ROCKS!!!
My AC condenser went on my 2001 Aztec. I brought it to a local shop who said he has replaced many of them and described the original part as defective. The cover cracks.
Also, my Service Engine Soon light kept coming on and after numberous times of having it checked I finally gave up and have left it on, which has now been for two years and the car operates fine.
I have been experiencing the same difficulties with my 2001 Aztek as others. My a/c went last fall - $600 to replace & I'd rather sweat. The tail lights are peeling & the tailgate does not open on the first push of the interior button. It engages fine with the remote. Also, my driver's side seat has a spring poking through it.
I sent an email to GM to complain about the defective a/c. I received an email within 24 hours stating they are not required to recall it since it does not pose a safety hazard.
I love my Aztek, but am very disappointed with Pontiac and probably will not buy another Pontiac.
Logistically, I love my 2001 Aztek as well, BUT... I had the A/C condensor problem (replaced under warranty), one of the rear seats was jammed & couldn't be removed. When the dealer tried to force it, the lever broke & needed to be replaced. Right now, it's at dealer again. I had to have it picked up via flatbed when it wouldn't go into gear. The dealer called after inspection and said the trannie was toast. He said it looks like a bomb went off in it. He said it must have been "hot shifting", but I've never heard that terminology before.
You know, I'm a Ford guy at heart, but I've bought a half dozen or so Pontiacs over the years. I had a 1968 Tempest that needed the drive shaft replaced twice. A 1978 Firebird Esprit that couldn't get out of it's way. And a 1981 Sunbird Formula that went through 3 manual transmissions.
I've loved my aztek until my condenser cracked and I had it replaced to find out that the air conditioner still doesn't work. The compressor won't kick on now and all kinds of things are going wrong with the electrical system. The mechanics can't seem to find out what's wrong.
I have a 2003 aztek and just yesterday the airconditioning fan knob broke off. At first, it was just stuck and continued turning resulted in the breaking. When starting, the engine makes an odd noise similar to that off a cadence being beat on an army drum. The hatch also refuses to open all the way with the key fob. Also, when the vehicle is running and is put in park it sometimes will not shift into drive. The a/c knob really makes me mad and I hope a replacement will make the fan work once more. If anyone has any ideas PLEASE post them.
I have been experiencing the same difficulties with my 2001 Aztek as others. My a/c went last summer - $700 to replace & I'd rather sweat. The tail lights are peeling & the tailgate does not open on the first push of the interior button. It engages fine with the remote. Also, my driver's side seat has a spring poking through it. My Check engine light has been on for months and just a week ago everything except lights stopped working, I don't know how fast I'm going or how much gas I have or even my miles. Has anyone else experienced this and how was it fixed?
Help! I have a 2001 AWD Pontiac Aztec. My gearshift won't come out of park. I had to open the bypass and use it each time to come out of park! Does anyone know what is causing this? At first I thought it was the brakes because we heard air when depressed. I had the brake pads replaced, but it still won't come out of park. If found someone had a problem like that with a different vehicle and it was a wire, but my brake lights work fine. Someone else said it may be a solenoid - but which one and where is it? I called Pontiac and they just told me to take it to a dealer - that's too expensive! I would really appreciate some input.
I have a 2001 Aztec 2WD that I purchased used in 2004. I have not had the peeling rear lights that other people have mentioned. The lumbar knobs are broken on both sides. The driver side broke the day we brought it home. I think either dealership or former owner only partially fixed previously.
I have the same problem with the rear hatch as many others have mentioned. Auto shop said they could repair for $450, not really worth it. My AC condenser went out at about 40,000 miles. Warranty had expired, cost about $1000. Engine makes a weird grinding noise at the start on occasion. Now the thermostat went at 49,000 miles. I have heard a lot about bad transmissions starting to get worried. Might replace soon.
Nice ride, but hate the repairs.
I purchased a 2001 Aztec new in January 2002. I loved the vehicle until the battery went dead the first time. That was fall of 2004. I have had to replace the battery twice sine then. I currently have no idea how much gas I have and my odometer quit working for a while. I tapped on the plexi-glass cover and it came back on (after it had been out for about 2 months) I too, have the peeling light covers and I also have lost the little bump guard strips off all four doors. I have not had a problem with the knobs of anything coming off, however half of my hooks in the back for the cargo nets have pulled out and stripped out the holes they came out of so I am not able to have them put back in. I have had to change the bulb on my front lights on occasion, which is normal, but the first time, I had to take it to a mechanic because I wasn't able to remove the little clip without breaking it.
At this moment, my Aztec is sitting in my garage, stuck. It will not crank, will not move out of park and my keys are stuck in the ignition. I first thought it was the battery, but I think the problem is deeper than that. If anyone has experienced this and can help, please tell me.
I do love my Aztec. I have never had a vehicle for more than 18 months and I have had this one for 4 years. I just hate all the repairs.
All my wife first bought this AZTEC thing in 2001, at first she had no problems, but within a year the upper portion of the engine upon start up would clack for about 2 minutes, Pontiac said this was normal I disagreed and took it to a unaffiliated garage, who promptly informed be that this engine is the worst engine GM made and they keep building them, and they keep shelling out.
We have now had virtually every problem I read on this site, the worst was the battery exploding and taking out the pcm then four days latter the bcm, which I feel is the cause of all the electrical problems, when you go to start the car it will ding 3 - 4 times and go through its calibration settings the come up with 'error' on the instrument cluster, When I ground out the solenoid for the gear shift it comes up and works at times, which means the current draw through the pcm allows for the bcm to feed the pcm the correct calibration data since this does not work every time I only offer it as a possible fix too many of your electrical problems. I suggest anyone willing to change out this part do it slowly and do not force the connectors, I changed out my own pcm, and had no problems, Pontiac wanted 600$ I did it for 50$, but still needed Pontiac ti burn the new pcm, the first two said it could not be done, but that's crap.
My 2001 Aztec seems to not be alone! I too have a spring coming through the drivers seat, the occasional grinding noise when I start it, the peeling tail lights, difficulty with the rear hatch letting go on the first try, and now the ac has just gone out. My mechanic looked up the price of a compressor and said it would be $800. He said there seems to be something "unique" to my particular compressor and says he doesn't know why because he has a 2005 Aztec and his is pretty standard compared to mine. I hope I'm not in the hole on this one, but it certainly sounds like I am.
I love my Aztec, but I guess this would be the lesson learned - do your research before you buy. Maybe a newer model would have had these kinks worked out, maybe not.
We had the same problem with the rear hatch until the dealer showed us the little black knobs along the side of the frame. If you turn those it will adjust the hatch so it opens on the first try. You still have to do it periodically, but it relieves some of the frustration. As for the A/C, lumbar knob, and grinding noise when starting, I have the same things. Don't know what I'll do about those yet.
Bought my 2003 Aztec in early 2004 with about 11k miles. The hatch never worked properly - when you push the remote button, you hear it click, but it just wouldn't open. Same thing with the interior hatch release button. That problem was (hopefully permanently) just fixed by the dealership, the paperwork reads "poor actuator at rear hatch actuator N6636.5 tested and straightened connector at read hatch release actuator and adjusted only". Maybe that will be of some help to someone with the same problem.
My main issue is with it locking in park, and I can't get it out of park until I turn the car off, then turn it back on. Sometimes it unlocks on the first try, other times it takes several tries. All times, but one, it only locks when I have been driving, then put it in park, then back in drive. (Like waiting in a drive-thru, etc) On one occasion it locked in park, and I knew I would have to turn it off and wait a minute, so thought I'd roll down the windows first. When I hit the driver window button, the radio cut off, the window would not roll down (none of them would) and on the radio display screen it said the word "LOCK" or "LOCKED".
We took it to the dealership this week, they replaced the 'floor shift control assembly', and we hoped it was fixed. I drove it home, went inside a few minutes and came back out, and immediately upon starting it, it was locked in park and would not shift! That was the first time it was stuck in park immediately upon start-up.
It's back at the dealer again now, and they are saying they cannot duplicate the problem, so they can't do anything. I told them of all the people I've seen on different forums talking of this problem, but of course, they say they've never seen this problem in the Aztec before, and that GM has no record of this being an issue. So, if you have this problem, please tell a little bit about it in detail here. Maybe we can all get together and have something done. If you have successfully had this problem fixed, please post what was done, the part/s replaced, etc, so maybe the rest of us can convince our dealerships of the problem and actually get it fixed! I've got 28 days left on my warranty, so I fear I will not be able to get it fixed in time - any info would be greatly appreciated, and not just by me, but apparently by many of us with this infuriating issue!
I have a 2001 Aztek, purchased last year with 29,000 miles. So far, the hatch doesn't engage at first try, both lumbar knobs are broken, I have recently replaced the ERG valve, and now ALL of my dash lights go off intermittently. As someone else mentioned in another comment, I too often do not know how fast I am going, how much gas I have or how many miles I have gone. I took it to one garage who told me that they could not fix it until the lights went off completely...I'd rather not wait. If anybody has anything that might help, I would really appreciate it! I too love the car, but I am thinking that I should have purchased a newer model, the repairs are costing me a small fortune.