Matt Linton, 48, paid $7,500 in 1996 for this 1970 Dodge Charger.
Jim Krumel | For The Lima News
VAN WERT – Matt Linton has been tagging along for 10 years now.
That’s what he calls the company he owns – Tag-a-long trailers. It manufactures trailers for golf carts.
“I got the idea when my daughter was younger and had a lot of her friends at the campground. We all couldn’t fit on the golf cart, so I came up with a trailer so everyone could ride,” the 1995 graduate of Lincolnview High School said.
What turned out to be a convenience for camping ended up becoming a self-employed full-time job.
“I started building trailers in 2014 and have been selling them ever since. We have sold almost 500 trailers along with other accessories for golf carts,” Linton said. “We even made a special prototype for the city of New York that had a special stretcher on the side.”
If Linton isn’t building trailers, he’s collecting cars. That collection includes everything from muscle cars to Volkswagens.
He has a 1970 Dodge Charger, a 1984 Pontiac Trans-Am, a 1986 Pontiac Fiero, a 1970 Volkswagen Beatle, a 1976 Volkswagen bus and a 1967 Volkswagen beach buggy.
“I like a little variety,” he jokes.
The Charger is the one that gets the most oohs and ahs. He found it 28 years ago when taking a drive to Decatur, Indiana. It was a jewel sitting under a tree as he passed an automobile junk yard.
“It brought back memories of the General Lee car on the old TV show, ‘The Dukes of Hazzard,’” Linton said. “I paid $7,500 for it. It needed some work, but generally, was in good shape. I’ve always enjoyed fast cars.”
The 1970 model year for the Charger was the last year of a shape widely regarded as one of the best-looking muscle cars of the era.
Linton has taken his car to the Duesenberg Museum Festival and car show in Auburn, Indiana, which is billed as “The World’s Greatest Classic Car Show and Festival.”
“You meet a lot of interesting people there with some really nice cars. My Charger showed well,” he said.
As it turns out, he gets his love for the Dodge Charger honestly.
Linton notes, “My dad told me that he had several Chargers when he was young. He bought his first one when he came home in 1965 after serving in Vietnam. The fact I have one from that generation actually makes it extra special to me.”
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