The Pontiac Aztek is a mid-size crossover SUV marketed by General Motors from model years 2001 until 2005, along with a rebadged variant, the Buick Rendezvous. As a 5-door crossover with a front engine with front-wheel drive and optional all-wheel drive, the Aztek featured a four-speed automatic transmission with a V-6 engine. Marketed by Pontiac as a "sport recreational vehicle," the Aztek used a shortened platform shared with GM's minivans (e.g., the Pontiac Montana) featuring 94 cubic feet of cargo room with its rear seats removed. The design employed conventional rear outswing doors rather than sliding doors and a bi-parting rear tailgate, the lower section formed with seat indentations and cupholders. Other features included a front center console that doubled as a removable cooler, Optional rear stereo controls in the cargo area, optional sliding cargo floor with grocery compartments and optional camping package with an attachable tent and air mattress. The Aztek was noted for its controversial styling. Pulitzer Prize-winning automotive journalist Dan Neil, in naming it one of the 50 worst cars of all time, said the Aztek "violate(d) one of the principal rules of car design: we like cars that look like us. With its multiple eyes and supernumerary nostrils, the Aztek looks deformed and scary, something that dogs bark at and cathedrals employ to ring bells. The shame is, under all that ugliness, there was a useful, competent crossover." Original concept First shown to the public in 1999, the Pontiac Aztek concept car was well received. It featured "Xtreme" futuristic styling and promised maximum versatility in support of a young and active lifestyle for its intended "Generation X" buyer demographic. The Aztek went on sale in summer 2000 as a 2001 model. The production edition of the Aztek was launched with the tagline "Quite possibly the most versatile vehicle on the planet" in conjunction with CBS's hit reality show Survivor in 2000. Styling The Aztek was styled under the direction of Tom Peters, who would later design the Chevrolet Corvette (C7). According to an analysis in 2000, BusinessWeek said the Aztek was to signal a design renaissance for GM, and to "make a statement about breaking from GM's instinct for caution." One designer said that during the design process, the Aztek was made "aggressive for the sake of being aggressive." Peters, the Chief Designer said "we wanted to do a bold, in-your-face vehicle that wasn't for everybody."