Cruising Through Time: The Fascinating Synergy Of Cars And Watches
5 min read
Sharing a remarkable parallel that transcends the boundaries of their respective industries, watch brands and car manufacturers represent the fusion of art and engineering at the highest level. Likewise, there is a lot of correlation between watch enthusiasts and petrolheads.
Cars And Watches: What’s The Connection?
Across the realms of horological and automotive industries, art and engineering harmonize. Craftsmanship, gears, power, transmission, output, and artistry of styling are at the forefront of conception as well as execution. The parallels between the two exist at artistic, mechanical, aesthetic as well as emotional levels.
Let’s delve deep into the intricacies of symbiosis between watch brands and car manufacturers.
The Union Formed By Brand Collaboration
As entities of mechanical inception, watch brands and car manufacturers usually collaborate at a marketing level. This branding perspective of collaboration yields timepieces which feature either a subtle or over the top implication of the union, the latter unfortunately being more common. A thoughtful artistic or visual connection which is well considered and subtly implemented is the route to opt for.
The secret here is to change or adopt one subtle thing so that anyone who doesn’t even care about cars would still appreciate the timepiece from an aesthetic standpoint. The approach should be more design-led rather than marketing-led.
Conceptualized and crafted to absolute perfection, here are our favorite car and watch branding collaborations:
1. Richard Mille RM 11-03
A skeletonised automatic flyback chronograph timepiece limited to 500 pieces, the RM 11-03 released in 2018 was created by Richard Mille in close collaboration with McLaren Design Director Rob Melville.
The watch case is an amalgam of Carbon interlaced with Orange Quartz.
2. IWC Pilot’s Watch Chronograph 41 Edition Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team
Expressing a subtle yet impressive implication of the bright and appealing Petronas colors, IWC’s Pilot’s Watch Chronograph 41 Edition Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team adds a totally unique flavor to an already impressive timepiece.
3. Jaeger-LeCoultre AMVOX2 Transponder DB9
Jaeger-LeCoultre and Aston Martin were partners in an impressive collab which gave birth to a timepiece that took a functional approach for a branding collaboration.
The Jaeger-LeCoultre AMVOX2 Transponder DB9 timepiece seconds as a key to the car and can be used to unlock and start your DB9, thanks to an electronic transponder. Now we are talking!
Motorsport-Inspired Horological Marvels
A very special segment of watch models caters to timepieces inspired by motorsport and race craft. Celebrating the passion for speed while brimming with motorsport heritage, a unique parallel between racing and watchmaking emerges.
This inspired ethos results in the following legendary timepieces:
1. Rolex Daytona
The undisputed king of the segment, Rolex Daytona is a timepiece inspired by the Mecca of American motorsport, the Daytona Speedway in Florida. Originally conceived as a tool for drivers to measure elapsed time, the watch has emerged to be a high-profile collectible piece.
2. TAG Heuer Carrera
The TAG Heuer Carrera line-up of timepieces took inspiration from the legendary Carrera Panamericana race. The expansive collection features chronograph timepieces designed and developed as race car driver tools.
3. Omega Speedmaster
While the cosmic links of Omega’s Speedmaster and its fabled essence as the Moonwatch highlight the heritage allure of the timepiece, the watch at its core is a purpose-built chronograph for timing race events and laps.
4. Porsche Design Chronograph 1
Born in 1972, the Porsche Design Chronograph 1 has direct links to a leading car manufacturer as it is a realization of the vision of Ferdinand Alexander Porsche, the designer of the original Porsche 911.
The Artisanal Collaborations
The close tie between cars and watches is sometimes exhibited by master watchmakers and car manufacturers as an avant-garde inception.
This overlap of artisanal watchmaking and luxury car design is featured in the Rolls-Royce La Rose Noire Droptail and the Rolls-Royce Amethyst Droptail. Piece unique Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Concept Split-Seconds Chronograph GMT and Vacheron Constantin Les Cabinotiers Armillary Tourbillon timepieces grace the dashboards of these $30 million automotive marvels.
A Symbiotic Partnership Harboring Common Passions
In a timepiece, a thoughtful and artistic visual connection shared with an automotive brand and subtly implemented accentuates its appeal rather than undermining its engineering.
Watch and car brand collaborations bring unique tastes to the forefront and allow us to cherish the mastery of timeless skills.
