Chevrolet’s smallest crossover is expected to make three more horsepower for 2027 without changing its engine. The 1.2-liter turbocharged three-cylinder that has powered the Trax since the current generation arrived would reportedly rise from 137 to 140 horsepower, while torque stays at 162 pound-feet.
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The figures come secondhand, which is why the word reportedly carries weight. GM has not published 2027 specifications, pricing or an on-sale date, and the update lands on a crossover that set a sales record in 2025. Small as the gain is, the shift in how the power is delivered may matter more to someone driving it.
From 137 to 140 horsepower, and a later torque peak
Autoblog says its numbers trace to a report from GM Authority, and the baseline checks out against current listings. Edmunds lists the 2026 Trax at 137 horsepower at 5,000 rpm and 162 pound-feet at 2,500 rpm, paired with a six-speed automatic and front-wheel drive on every trim, and GM Authority’s own model page carries the same 137 figure, expecting the powertrain to carry over. A three-horsepower bump therefore lands exactly on 140, the number Autoblog relays.
The reported change in the torque curve is the more interesting detail. Peak torque would arrive at 4,000 rpm instead of 2,500 rpm, meaning the engine holds its full pull later in the rev range. Torque itself is unchanged at 162 pound-feet, and the complete curve has not been released, so how it feels around town is unknown. Edmunds rates the engine at 30 miles per gallon combined with a 13.2-gallon tank, and a later torque peak could shave some of the low-speed pull that makes a three-cylinder feel lively in traffic, a tradeoff that only a drive will settle.
Three trims replace five on the 2027 lineup
The same report says the lineup shrinks from five trims to three: LT, RS and Activ. For 2026, Edmunds shows five rungs, from the LS at $23,495 through the LT at $24,995 and the 1RS at the same price, up to the 2RS and Activ at $27,195. Folding the LS into the LT would remove the entry-level price point, and Autoblog says pricing has not been announced. Edmunds puts the average price paid in the latest data at $22,785 for the LS and $23,902 for the LT, so the cheapest way into a Trax is where any change would be felt first. An all-wheel-drive version is still not offered.
A TrueCar overview of the 2027 model also lists the three trims, shows fuel economy of 28 city, 32 highway and 30 combined miles per gallon, and says the 2027 car has no major changes from the prior year. That page still gives 137 horsepower, so the higher figure is not yet confirmed by any listing GM controls. The same overview lists automatic emergency braking, a blind-spot system, adaptive cruise control, remote start and parking sensors as standard on all three trims, under a three-year, 36,000-mile basic warranty.
An 11.3-inch screen, Google built in and tariff exposure from South Korea
Inside, Autoblog reports an 11.3-inch touchscreen with Google built in and an 11-inch digital instrument cluster. Exterior changes are described by Mexico’s Motorpasion as a mid-cycle refresh: a taller grille, reshaped bumper, horizontal LED headlights, new wheels including 19-inch units on the RS, a tailgate with integrated lights and power opening for the first time, and a color called Lagoon. It adds that all versions get 20 driver-assistance features, including automatic emergency braking that detects pedestrians and cyclists. That report states the Mexican car keeps 137 horsepower, a discrepancy worth watching, and expects the model there in the second quarter.
Every Trax is built at GM’s Changwon plant in South Korea, which Autoblog notes leaves it exposed to U.S. import tariffs. That matters for the price, because the Trax sells largely on being cheap, and any tariff cost has to be absorbed by GM or passed to buyers.
Sales that make the crossover GM’s volume lever
The subcompact crossover, entering its fourth model year as a second-generation design per GM Authority, sold 206,339 units in 2025, up 2.8 percent and its best annual total, according to Autoblog. It added 57,917 sales in the third quarter of 2026, up 16.3 percent from a year earlier. Those numbers, a record year followed by a strong quarter, explain why GM would spend money on a mid-cycle update to a vehicle whose basic hardware is unchanged.
With neither a GM statement nor a price on record, and Motorpasion expecting U.S. arrival in the spring of next year, the unresolved questions are the ones buyers care about most: whether the extra three horsepower is real or a reporting artifact of the conflicting listings, what the reduced three-trim lineup costs, whether tariffs touch the sticker, and when the car reaches dealers. Until GM publishes a spec sheet, the 140 figure should be read as a credible leak rather than a confirmed rating.
This article was produced with the assistance of AI and reviewed by Morning Overview editors prior to publication.
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