---
title: "Chevy Blazer Will Be Reborn as a Mid-Size Crossover, Report Claims"
description: "Say it ain't so, Joe."
date: "2017-08-24"
modified: "2017-08-25"
authors:
  - name: "Kyle Cheromcha"
    job_title: "Editor-in-Chief"
    link: "https://www.thedrive.com/authors/kyle-cheromcha"
url: "https://www.thedrive.com/news/13783/chevy-blazer-will-be-reborn-as-a-mid-size-crossover-report-claims"
categories:
  - "Chevrolet News"
  - "News"
  - "News by Brand"
tags:
  - "4x4"
  - "blazer"
  - "Chevrolet"
  - "crossover"
  - "suv/crossover"
---

# Chevy Blazer Will Be Reborn as a Mid-Size Crossover, Report Claims

![](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/images-by-url-td/content/2017/08/k5-blazer.png>)
*\<em\>www.thedrive.com</em>*

Not content to let Ford have all the nostalgic 4x4 fun with the [reintroduction of the Ford Bronco in 2020,](<https://www.thedrive.com/news/12610/2020-ford-bronco-will-have-325-hp-turbocharged-v-6-report-says>) it seems that Chevrolet will be bringing back one of its own iconic off-road nameplates, according to [a report in *Automotive News*:](<https://www.autonews.com/article/20170822/OEM04/170829912/chevys-new-crossover-takes-shape>) the Chevy Blazer.

Before you get too excited, however, there's a catch. Unlike the Ford Bronco, which will be built on the global Ford Ranger's body-on-frame platform and whose marketing materials emphasize capability, it seems the new Chevrolet Blazer will be what people these days just can't get enough of: a mid-size, three-row crossover, with no removable roof in sight. *Sigh.*

*Automotive News* points out that the company tweaked the sizes of its existing Equinox and Traverse crossovers in the latest generation to make room for a "right-size" entry, a trend that's [all the rage these days.](<https://www.thedrive.com/news/7891/the-all-new-2017-jeep-compass-has-offroad-specs-worthy-of-the-badge>) The publication's spy photographer caught the alleged Blazer prototype [testing against a Nissan Murano,](<https://www.autonews.com/gallery/20170822/PHOTOS01/822009998/3>) which is a sentence that physically hurts to type out. It will also compete against the Ford Edge when it debuts in 2019.

If you're looking for a better sneak preview, [*Automotive News* also states](<https://www.autonews.com/article/20170822/OEM04/170829912/chevys-new-crossover-takes-shape>) that the new Chevy Blazer will share a platform and engine choices (though not styling) with the GMC Acadia, which happens to be the brand's best-selling model outside the Sierra. That means a 2.5-liter four-cylinder, or a 3.6-liter V6 engine. It will likely offer a third row of seating as well.

Reintroducing the Blazer nameplate for a parking-lot-cruising crossover is a strange move for a number of reasons. Full disclosure: I should state up front that I own a 1988 [K5 Blazer,](<https://www.thedrive.com/vintage/2787/the-chevrolet-blazer-k-5-is-the-vintage-truck-you-need-to-buy-right-now>) so it pains me to see the name reborn as something so antithetical to what it previously stood for. Criticize the S-10 Blazer all you want (no really, go ahead), but at least it was still a body-on-frame SUV equipped with a four-wheel-drive transfer case.

And like Ford, Chevrolet also already sells a truck-based SUV internationally—the Chevy TrailBlazer, riding on the new Colorado frame. That could easily be adapted for the American market as a reborn Blazer and compete head on with the Ranger-based Ford Bronco. But by choosing the soft-roader path, Chevrolet is automatically alienating those who would be drawn in by the Blazer name, while doing nothing for people who would buy it anyway simply because it exists.

Not that it will hurt them in the end, though. They will build it, and people will come.

## Author
Overseeing an expert staff of writers and editors from his lair in Los Angeles, Kyle shapes The Drive’s singular approach to covering the automotive industry and car culture. He’s been with the site as a writer since 2017, taking over as editor in 2019. On a daily basis, Kyle is responsible for directing The Drive's editorial news and car review content strategies, setting special coverage priorities, managing complex reporting projects, and ensuring what you read on the page meets our high internal standards for quality and trustworthiness. He is also the executive producer of The Drive's YouTube channel, which was relaunched in February 2024 to great acclaim and has accumulated over 14M new views in its first year back on the scene. He hosts a biweekly series on the channel where he breaks down fascinating and complicated stories from the automotive world.

### Author social links  
[Bluesky](<https://bsky.app/profile/kylecheromcha.bsky.social>)  
[Instagram](<https://www.instagram.com/kylecheromcha>)  
[LinkedIn](<https://www.linkedin.com/in/kyle-cheromcha-1550248a/>)