***Ah! My Eyes! Holy Crap!***

[cawimmer430]

Hey Wimmer, there are boat loads of ugly European cars.

Lexus isn't European. 

[FoMoJo]

The local Rent-a-Wreck agent has one as his 'poster' car.  It's bright yellow with large black "Rent-a-Wreck" lettering all over it.  I smile whenever I see it.

[r0tor]

your know, I think the Asstek is aging pretty well... looking at one today doesn't make me want to vomit any more then 5 years ago

[giant_mtb]

Holy crap!  They're Ohio State Buckeyes fans, too!

Look at the sticker on the back window!

An Ohio State fan would drive an Aztec.

[Soup DeVille]

And you could shove all your gear towards the edge of the tent, and free up space in the car.


I'm still eager to find out if I can lie comfortable in the back of the Aveo with the rear seats folded down.

I sleep in the front seat of the Civic relatively regularly.

[S204STi]

There were a lot of clever features and packaging in those. They drove quite well for a minivan, and were actually BUILT quite well. In AWD form, you could get them for over $10k cheaper than the AWD Montana minivan they were built from, making them a fairly decent value IF you could get past the styling.

lmao, when you said they were built well I about died of laughter... I work on these things regularly and there is nothing nice about them.

And if the crash test results are similar to a Montana there is no way I would let anyone I love drive one.

[Madman]

Pontiac's efforts to target the hitherto untapped demographic of homeless customers proved to be a miserable failure.




Cheers,
Madman of the People

[ifcar]

And if the crash test results are similar to a Montana there is no way I would let anyone I love drive one.

Not outstanding, but not at that level.

Aztek:


Montana:



Hm, it actually looks better wrecked than intact. Pontiac should have sold this version.

[the Teuton]

When it comes time for my brother to trade in his trusty Taurus, he's probably going to get an Aztek.  He kinda wants one.  Besides it being ugly, I can't find a whole lot of reasons why he shouldn't get one.

[ifcar]

When it comes time for my brother to trade in his trusty Taurus, he's probably going to get an Aztek.  He kinda wants one.  Besides it being ugly, I can't find a whole lot of reasons why he shouldn't get one.

Poor visibility, clumsy handling, and mediocre gas mileage?

[2o6]

Poor visibility, clumsy handling, and mediocre gas mileage?

Compared to.........what?

[ifcar]

Compared to.........what?

Compared to other car-based compact/midsize SUVs?

[2o6]

Compared to other car-based compact/midsize SUVs?

Wasn't the Aztek one of the first of it's kind? The only one I can think of that is comparable is the Toyota Highlander.

[ifcar]

Wasn't the Aztek one of the first of it's kind? The only one I can think of that is comparable is the Toyota Highlander.

If someone is buying used today, there's slightly more to compare it against than the Highlander.

[S204STi]

Wasn't the Aztek one of the first of it's kind? The only one I can think of that is comparable is the Toyota Highlander.

I recall that the Aztek and it's sibling the Rendezvous did kinda poorly in contemporary comparos.

[ChrisV]

lmao, when you said they were built well I about died of laughter... I work on these things regularly and there is nothing nice about them.

And if the crash test results are similar to a Montana there is no way I would let anyone I love drive one.

The fit and lack of rattles was better in them than in other low to mid price GM vehicles at the time, and was one of the things that even the magazines noticed. The couple I've driven bore that out.

And I've let people I love drive my fucking FIAT, which I'm sure would do much poorer than an Aztek. They'll also be riding around (and possibly driving) my '63 Comet, which woudl probably score worse that the worst new car, too. Fucking tired of people too scared to drive a new car that would score better then the old cars we love and often already own and drive.

As far as comparos go, I don't compare it to an SUV, but to AWD minivans, where it was considerably cheaper, and probably still is on the used market.

[ifcar]

As far as comparos go, I don't compare it to an SUV, but to AWD minivans, where it was considerably cheaper, and probably still is on the used market.

Why?

It's the size of an AWD SUV and the price of an AWD SUV.

[omicron]

Not outstanding, but not at that level.

Aztek:


Montana:



Hm, it actually looks better wrecked than intact. Pontiac should have sold this version.

Well, Iffy, I found this witty, even if no-one else did.

*comforts*

[the Teuton]

That middle picture comforts my soul every time I ride in my mom's Venture.

[FoMoJo]

Poor visibility, clumsy handling, and mediocre gas mileage?

Compared to other car-based compact/midsize SUVs?

More specifically, the Escape.  People were cross-shopping them when they both arrived in '01.  The other choices were the CR-V and Rav4 which did not appeal to those inclined towards domestics.

[ChrisV]

Why?

It's the size of an AWD SUV and the price of an AWD SUV.

So's a minivan. But a minivan and SUV target different markets. The Aztek was a cheaper, uglier minivan, not a mid size SUV.

[FoMoJo]

So's a minivan. But a minivan and SUV target different markets. The Aztek was a cheaper, uglier minivan, not a mid size SUV.

I believe that some people thought it was; especially with the camper option.

[ifcar]

So's a minivan. But a minivan and SUV target different markets. The Aztek was a cheaper, uglier minivan, not a mid size SUV.

The Montana is 18 inches longer than the Aztek, has 50% more cargo space, and seats eight instead of five. The Aztek is no more of a minivan than an a Highlander or Pilot; in fact, it's less, because they're closer to a van in size and passenger capacity.

[S204STi]

As far as comparos go, I don't compare it to an SUV, but to AWD minivans, where it was considerably cheaper, and probably still is on the used market.

Which is fine except it's really nothing like a Montana.  I don't even think they share the same chassis code.

Anyway, fit and finish isn't that important to me... I drive an Impreza which has more anti squeek/rattle mitigation than I care to think about, and I'd rather drive your Fiat than an Aztek.

[ChrisV]

I've driven an Aztek. it wasn't that bad, from the inside. And yes, it feels more like a minvan than any SUV I've driven.

Oh, and iffy, the Montana is also that much larger than my dad's older Dodge turbo minivan. Does that mean his Dodge minivan is an SUV?

[ifcar]

The Aztek is one of many car-based SUVs that are based-on or otherwise drive like minivans, and it's much smaller than the minivans of its time.

Again, if it's a minivan, so is most every other car-based SUV.

[S204STi]

I've driven an Aztek. it wasn't that bad, from the inside. And yes, it feels more like a minvan than any SUV I've driven.

Oh, and iffy, the Montana is also that much larger than my dad's older Dodge turbo minivan. Does that mean his Dodge minivan is an SUV?

Differences between it and a minivan include but are not limited to: no sliding doors; no 3rd row seating; and higher ride height.

[Soup DeVille]

The Aztek is one of many car-based SUVs that are based-on or otherwise drive like minivans, and it's much smaller than the minivans of its time.

Again, if it's a minivan, so is most every other car-based SUV.

Its a minivan pretending to be an SUV.

[ifcar]

Its a minivan pretending to be an SUV.

Again, no more than any other car-based SUV and less than many.

[Soup DeVille]

Again, no more than any other car-based SUV and less than many.

I never said that was unique.