RACY WHEELS OF TIME

Automotive-inspired watches, with design cues from the racing industry, are leaving their imprints on the sands of time. Hiren Kumar Bose

Wicked are the wheels of time, for they don’t even take a breather. And when the combination is watches and cars, it’s lethal. Love of good cars and a love of watches makes perfect sense to anyone with more than a passing interest in either. Some buy exotic super
cars for their looks; others buy them for the prestige. Some others, however, buy them for one reason: to drive them. And the same can be said of watches too. Some wear them for special occasions and some to work.

There have been connections throughout motoring history to the horological world, particularly between luxury watches and sports car companies. And when you boil it down, the link really does become obvious. Consisting of myriad of specialist components, both need regular maintenance and are imbued with craftsmanship that stands out. The degree of luxury in an exquisite sports car and a truly magnificent wristwatch is the same – they are both items that thousands aspire to own. Finest automobiles or timepieces are among the favourite purchases of those with means. The result of the mingling of the two worlds has been a wide array of automotive-inspired watches, taking more or less design cues and construction materials from the automotive industry. On some of the most lusted-after timepieces in a jeweller's windows today you'll see such materials as aluminum, titanium, ceramics and carbon fiber; you'll see rubber wrist straps with tire-tread patterns; and you'll see ultraexclusive watches sharing their names with the most prestigious automobiles and motor races in the world. There are myriad reasons as to why a watch might have a car logo on its dial. You might call the car/watch connection smart, commercial co-branding. Though there are many such connections, none can match the success of the ‘Breitling For Bentley’ watches. It was the success of the two ‘B’s – Bentley and Breitling – which showed to the watch industry that people would buy car-branded watches even if they didn’t own the cars they represented. It is believed that the Breitling For Bentley range, on its own, boosted Breitling’s turnover by 16 per cent. But a logo needn’t even appear on the watch: collectors pay handsomely for original Heuer Monaco chronographs just because Steve McQueen wore one in the film, Le Mans.

Rolex, among its many sporting connections, is associated with an American championship, the Rolex Sports Car Series, which it has sponsored since 2002. On the other side of the Atlantic, Tissot is the official timer for the Moto GP, Oris sponsors Team Williams in Formula 1, TW Steel sponsors and times the A1GP, Tag Heuer has ambassadors in Formula 1 racers Heikki Kovalainen, Kimi Raikkonen, Lewis Hamilton and Sebastien Bourdais, and Audemars Piguet also has a presence in the world’s most famous racing championships, with Jarno Trulli, Rubens Barrichello and Sebastien Buemi all being brand ambassadors. Then there is Jaeger LeCoultre’s connection to the Le Mans Aston Martin Racing team, which it sponsors. At this year’s race, Harold Primat was wearing the AMVOX2 Chronographe.

There are also a myriad of connections that have nothing to do with racing. Panerai has an affiliation with Ferrari, and has a range of exclusive, high-quality watches which bear the legendary prancing horse and Ferrari name, although they do not sponsor any of the Italian sports car manufacturers’ racing endeavours.

Presently, there are at least 30 car/watch marriages, from IndyCar connections to driver sponsorships. Whether or not any of them might acquire the mystique and value of the Mido Bugattis, a ‘Paul Newman’ Rolex Daytona, or a watch once owned by Richard Petty, only time will tell. We select eight of them.