The wheels of time keep turning

Economy

TAG Heuer Monaco Vintage Limited Edition © TAG Heuer

Girard-Perregaux 375MM for Ferrari © Girard-Perregaux

Panerai Limited Edition Ferrari GMT 8 Days © Panerai

Breitling Bentley Flying B Chronograph / Bentley Continental GT © Breitling / Bentley

Audemars Piguet Tourbillon and Chronograph Millenary MC12 / Maserati MC12 © Audemars Piguet

Sophisticated mechanics are something which automakers and watchmakers share, and the two are frequently partner to commercial agreements. These give rise to often limited-edition watches whose forms are inspired by some of the most beautiful cars.

Christophe Roulet

Visitors to the Geneva Motor Show, their eyes riveted on the gorgeous, gleaming machines unveiled there, aren’t the only ones to show such an interest in the sector. Eons ago, watch companies caught on to the fact that the men ogling the latest fuel-injection engine were often the ones who bought their watches. Indeed, there are some striking similarities between the two worlds: both cultivate the same attention to detail and the same obsession with design. Above all, both strive for the same mechanical perfection. Not to mention the aura surrounding the racing drivers and teams, two extraordinarily powerful image vectors in a sport that draws one of the biggest international audiences. Hardly surprising then that these two worlds should have merged even more closely together over recent years, either through partnerships between prestigious watch manufacturers and high-end automakers, or by choosing one of motor-racing’s stars as the new face of a brand.

The chronograph revolution

While this type of partnership has been religiously pursued over the past few years, the influence cars have on watch design goes back much further. When the young George Schären opened his workshop in Biel on November 11th, 1918, he probably had nothing revolutionary in mind. However, with the First World War over, seeing Bugattis, Lancias, Hispano-Suizas and Delages back on the road sparked an idea: why not transpose the instantly recognisable form of their radiators to his watches? The trend was launched, signing the Mido brand’s first successes along the way. Other manufacturers, Patek Philippe, Tiffany and Cartier among them, rapidly followed suit, often in response to demand from a new generation of motorists. Watches were fitted with rotating crowns and curved cases that showed time at a glance. Some were even designed to be worn on the side of the wrist so drivers could look at their watch and keep their hands on the wheel.

However, the symbiosis between car and watch was truly cemented by the advent of wrist chronographs in the 1940s, and more especially by the launch of the automatic chronograph movement in 1969. Now speed merchants could calculate their performance to a tenth of a second. Certain brands jumped head-first into this niche, their name becoming almost synonymous with different types of motor racing. Clearly, TAG Heuer is one of them: launched in the 1970s, its Carrera and Monaco watches were directly inspired by motor sports. Monaco owes its success to the movie Le Mans, where it can be seen on Steve McQueen’s wrist. Rolex is behind another legendary driver’s watch, the Oyster Cosmograph Daytona. It was sported by another Hollywood icon, Paul Newman, in his movie Winning.

Chopard and Girard-Perregaux

This passion that watch designers can have for beautiful motors has given rise to some already historic partnerships. Since 1988, Chopard has been the official sponsor of the Mille Miglia which, into the mid-Fifties and alongside the 24 Heures du Mans and the Indy 500, was one of the three key events in the motor-racing calendar. Today the race draws a crowd of vintage-car aficionados who complete the circuit at the wheel of their classic Porsche, Lancia, Alfa, Aston-Martin, Ferrari, Mercedes or Jaguar. Each participant is rewarded with the latest Mille Miglia by Chopard, now one of the brand’s flagship collections.

Such unconditional devotion is something the boss of Girard-Perregaux can understand. Indeed, a former racing driver with a vintage car collection of some forty "beauties", Luigi Macaluso didn’t need to think twice about where his heart lay, and signed an agreement with Ferrari that would last over a decade. "The partnership brought us experience and emotion," he recalls. "We were pioneers in developing this type of co-branding agreement with Ferrari. Ten years on, the time had come to consider new ways of continuing this approach." After an adventure which Luigi Macaluso described as a "mad race", with investment, emotion and passion for milestones, the two partners went their separate ways. Ferrari has now teamed up with Officine Panerai whose Italian origins it shares. The Richemont Group brand has marked the occasion with two collections, Granturismo and Scuderia, whose sculpted forms make multiple references to the famous sports cars.

Breitling and Audemars Piguet

After Girard-Perregaux, other brands were quick to see the benefits of an alliance between two leading names in luxury, one a watchmaker and one an automaker. For some, this meant associating an original watch with a prestigious automotive brand. Bulgari worked with Cadillac to design the instrument panel for the XLR, whose owners had the opportunity to purchase an exclusive Bulgari watch. Rodolfe partnered DaimlerChrysler to develop a limited-edition watch commemorating the legendary Dodge Viper.

Breitling is another brand with an eye for opportunities in the automotive sector, in this instance with Bentley. Under the terms of their agreement, Breitling designed the dashboard clock for the Continental GT, and launched the exclusive Breitling for Bentley collection which this year welcomes a chronograph version of the Flying B. "This collection is clearly positioned at the high end of the market," noted Jean-Paul Girardin, Vice President of Breitling, shortly after the launch. "It’s a new prestige collection for our brand. We haven’t had such a response since the Breitling Orbiter." It’s the same story over at Audemars Piguet, which last year unveiled its Millenary MC12 tourbillon and chronograph in honour of Maserati; the two companies have already covered many miles together. ■

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