The objective of this research is to study the effect of using maleic anhydride-grafted polyethylene-octene elastomer (POE-g-MA) as a compatibilizer on nylon 6/acrylonitile-butadiene-styrene (ABS) copolymer blends. With POE-g-MA, nylon 6/ABS at a blending ratio of 80/20 showed an optimal result in modified impact property. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) revealed that the particle sizes of ABS in the dispersed phase diminished as the amount of the added compatibilizer (POE-g-MA) increased. The compatibilizer reduced the surface tension between nylon 6 and ABS, thus increasing the compatibility of the two phases. Furthermore, studies of the rheological behavior of the system showed that the shear viscosity of nylon 6/ABS blends also increased with the introduction of POE-g-MA. Finally, dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) experiments showed that adding POE-g-MA dramatically improved the impact strength of the blends at room temperature and low temperatures. (C) 2004 Society of Plastics Engineers.