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Pontiac Aztek enjoys rebirth thanks to Millennials

Apparently, Millennials – those between 18 and 34 – aren't afraid to look different on the road, and they like performance, too. A new study by Edmunds is discovering some surprising vehicle choices by this group. Among them, the long-derided Pontiac Aztek is getting a new day in the sun with 25.5 percent its buyers coming from this generation in the first half of 2015. For comparison, Millennials represent an average of 16.8 percent of used car purchases. The Aztek is slowly shaking its reputation as a styling abomination, which seems tied to its appearance on Breaking Bad. The show premiered in 2008, and the Pontiac has been on this list for four of the past five years, according to Edmunds. It even led the pack in 2010. A recent Retro Review from MotorWeek also showed that the crossover wasn't always so hated. While it's still a shock to see the Aztek on any popularity list, the awkward-looking crossover only ranks sixth among Millennials. The vehicle with the biggest portion of buyers from the generation is the Dodge Magnum with 27.6 percent. According to Edmunds, the bluntly styled wagon is especially popular in Detroit and Chicago. The Chrysler Pacifica comes in a close second at 27.3 percent. When it comes to used cars, value and utility appear to trump just about anything else for many Millennial buyers," Edmunds analyst Jeremy Acevedo said in the report. Young buyers aren't afraid of sporty rides, either. The Subaru WRX has 26.4 percent Millennial buyers to rank third place on the list, and the Volkswagen R32 takes fifth at 25.7 percent. Just a few points lower in seventh place is the Nissan GT-R at 25.4 percent, and the final performance machine in 10th place is the Lexus IS-F with 24.7 percent. Related Video:

VW's credit ratings could take a beating

In addition to a significant drop in its share price already, Volkswagen's diesel emissions scandal is continuing to have major financial repercussions on the German automaker. According to The Detroit News, credit rating agencies like Standard & Poor's and Moody's changed their forecasts on the company to negative, and Fitch has considered doing so, as well. Volkswagen appears to have the money to cover the costs of this ordeal, but the agencies question the effect that this has in the long term. "Moody's concern, however, is that Volkswagen's alleged breach of US environment rules and, especially, the process by which that breach occurred, will have an adverse effect on its reputation and credibility within the global passenger car markets," the company wrote in a note to investors, according to The Detroit News. VW has initially set aside $7.25 billion to fix things, but the potential shakeup of top executives has caused some investor uncertainty, too. The actual costs for VW to deal with this scandal are still unknown. In the US, the Department of Justice has begun a criminal investigation, and with other automakers the government has settled for $900 million against General Motors and $1.2 billion against Toyota. Attorneys general in 29 states have started looking deeper, according to The Detroit News, and regulators in Europe, South Korea, and Canada have commenced their own probes, as well. Related Video:

FTC investigates VW diesel ads

The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is investigating Volkswagen's television and print advertising campaign claiming diesels were better for the environment than gas-powered vehicles, according to Hybrid Cars. The FTC probe was spurred by a letter Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) sent to FTC chairwoman Edith Ramirez asking the regulator to drop the hammer. In short, the charge is false advertising, as VW and its Audi affiliate have long grouped some of its fleet under the "Clean Diesel" umbrella, which the FTC may find to be a misnomer. Nelson suggested VW be forced to run a counter-campaign of sorts as a "mea culpa," while others have approached the FTC saying it should be reimbursed for buying a more polluting car than what had been advertised. The FTC is the latest group to probe VW since it was revealed last month as many as 11 million diesel vehicles contained software designed to cheat emissions-testing systems. Most recently, the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) re-designated VW's fleet from being among the cleanest to, along with Chrysler, the dirtiest. VW's CEO stepped down last month, while the company said it would set aside $7.3 billion to address the issue. Related Video: News Source: Hybrid Cars via US News & World ReportImage Credit: AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar Government/Legal Green Volkswagen Emissions Diesel Vehicles vw diesel scandal