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Global Concepts (Part 2)
Dodge MAXXcab
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Dodge bills its MAXXcab concept vehicle as the world's first "passenger priority" truck. The pickup has a cab-forward design and other sedan-like attributes. It doubles as an office-on-wheels or mobile daycare center, while offering a 0.45-t (0.5-ton) payload and enough bed space for weekend projects and hobby equipment. The bed is wider and deeper than today's full-size truck boxes-and comes with an integrated picnic table and chairs. An "infotronic" system accommodates mobile-office data and information needs. The center console houses a pop-up "plug-and-play" laptop computer, with liquid crystal displays in the instrument panel and in the rear of the console. A voice-recognition system allows access to the mobile-office screens and the Internet for real-time weather updates, traffic information, and e-mail. Voice commands also control the vehicle's navigation and diagnostics systems and telephone. In the rear are three built-in child-safety seats and an "edutainment" system with DVD player, Internet access, and a handheld sketchpad. The middle rear seat is power-controlled from the front doors, allowing movement of the seat closer to the front seats to make it easier for the front passenger to tend to a toddler. Power comes from a 4.7-L Magnum V8 engine producing 178 kW (238 hp) and 400 N/m (295 lb/ft).
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