Carmakers dream up massive, youthful designs

0 Comments | USA TODAY, February, 2005 | by Sharon Silke Carty

CHICAGO -- The Chicago Auto Show is all about being big. The folks who run the show expanded the showroom floor to 1.2 million square feet, surpassing the North American International Auto Show in Detroit in terms of sheer size. Detroit reigns supreme in the number of introductions -- 65 compared with 13 in Chicago. But automakers, not known for their restraint, rolled out some gargantuan products during the media previews here last week. The supersized Chicago Auto Show runs through Sunday. Some biggies and not so biggies on view:

Dodge Ram Mega Cab. The gigantic Dodge truck is so big, some school districts may want to think about replacing their yellow buses.

Actually, while it probably couldn't hold a classroom full of children, the Ram Mega Cab is definitely the...