Reboots come in all shapes and sizes, from the kind found on TV and film, to the daily process you go through just to get your phone to receive voice mails.

The 2019 Chevrolet Blazer is a reboot, but the familiar nameplate won't return on a truck-based SUV.

With the reformatted Blazer, Chevy fills the niche in its lineup left between the five-seat Equinox and the seven-seat Traverse. If you're still hoping for a two-door spin-off of the Silverado, we feel your pain, but that Blazer left us a decade ago, and won't be coming back anytime soon.

Review continues below

The new vehicle is a mid-size crossover SUV with front-drive roots, seating for five, and a base inline-4 engine. It's sold in base L, LT, RS, and Premier models.

We give the 2019 Chevy Blazer a 6.8 out of 10, with gas mileage and safety scores to come. (Read more about how we rate cars.)

This Blazer looks nothing like the past. It’s divorced its old SUV ball and chain and is swiping right on the crossover look of the moment: Yep, it’s a floating canopy. It works here, though no car works that look like the Nissan Murano does. It plays fine on the longer, higher Blazer bod nonetheless. The cabin’s winglike styling themes create the oddly shaped buttons GM seems to love, but they work well enough, and don’t disrupt the pared-down appeal of the Blazer’s cabin.

The base Blazer has a 193-horsepower inline-4 with acceptable groove but all the aural charm of an imbalanced box fan. Its 9-speed automatic passes out power fairly, and the front-drive base Blazer has a taut ride with well-sorted steering that feels more Malibu than Equinox.

We’ll still take the V-6, thanks, with its 308-hp output, with the bigger 20-inch (or 21-inch) wheels and tires, and with the trick all-wheel-drive setup on Premier and RS editions. It’s gutsy, makes better noises, rides quite firmly, and has connective steering that swings fluidly through esses–and tracks very well on interstates. In this form the new Blazer can tow more than it weighs: 4,500 versus 4,007 pounds (or more, on plusher trims).

Big interior space greets five adult passengers in the Blazer, and the cargo space flexes with a rear seat that slides on a track; the rear seats fold down to create a flat load floor, too. It’s a great recipe but none of the Blazer’s seats fit us well. Base cloth models have pretty quilted stitching but short bottom cushions, and the second-row Blazer bench suffers the same fate.

No Blazer comes standard with automatic emergency braking; that’s an egregious omission even on inexpensive versions, given that the technology’s standard on a $20,000 Corolla. Blind-spot monitors are widely available, but a surround-view camera system and adaptive cruise control are pay-up prospects, and only offered on top trims. Base Blazers get power features, automatic climate control, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and Bluetooth with audio streaming. The most expensive versions—at $43,000 and up—sport wireless smartphone charging, a sunroof, leather upholstery, cooled front seats, and a handsfree power tailgate.