Schenelle Dsouza
Luxury car owners have been customising their vehicles with unique elements for a good while now. And inserting watches into the dashboard is the hot new trend thanks to Rolls Royce’s Boat Tail. The luxury car maker has once again added a luxury watch to its car, but only for a special customisation, at the behest of a devoted Rolls-Royce owner.
Vacheron Constantin was the chosen watchmaker and was asked to create a bespoke Les Cabinotiers Armillary Tourbillon for a new Rolls-Royce Amethyst Droptail.
Powered by a manual-winding movement, Calibre 1990, the Vacheron Constantin Les Cabinotiers Armillary Tourbillon incorporates a bi-axial tourbillon with a cylindrical balance spring. The escapement consists of a silicon escape wheel and pallet-lever with diamond pallets to reduce friction. The cylindrical balance was designed to give the tourbillon a perfectly concentric beat and therefore improve isochronism.
This isn’t the first time a luxury watch and car brand collaborated to create a unique timepiece. And as interesting as the Vacheron Constantin Les Cabinotiers Armillary Tourbillon is, it’s not really available for sale. Nonetheless, check out these truly luxurious car watches that combine the best of luxury cars and watches.
Bovet for Rolls-Royce
Rolls-Royce uber luxury Boat Tail had the best of luxury added to it. And the Bover 1822 timepiece was one of its many striking features. Luxury Swiss watchmaker Bovet 1822 and Rolls-Royce re-imagined iconic dashboard clocks with “his and hers” reversible timepieces. The timepiece is fitted with a tourbillon hidden behind RR’s Spirit of Ecstasy emblem and has a five-day power reserve. The timepieces are reversible and are housed in Bovet 1822’s patented Amadeo case, which allows them to be worn on the wrist, or used as a table clock, pendant or pocket watch, and of course, be placed front and centre as the motor car’s clock.
Bremont Jaguar C-type
Jaguar introduced a racing-focused car called the XK120-C in 1951 which inspired the Jaguar C-Type watch collaboration with Bremont. The watch’s 43mm case has a fluid shape, topped with an anodized aluminium bezel, both reminiscent of the original car’s bodywork. A silver-plated multi-level sunburst dial sits under the dome-shaped sapphire crystal, brushed with a dial ring, a heritage Jaguar logo, black gloss numerals, two white sub-dials and a chronograph hand just like the needle on the original car’s tachymeter. A decorative coin depicting the C-Type’s badge is fixed on the stainless-steel case back, while a tan-brown leather racing strap completes the sporty look.
Girard-Perregaux Laureato Absolute Chronograph Aston Martin F1 Edition
The Laureato Absolute Chronograph Aston Martin F1 Edition was the first of its kind to feature a lightweight case made from carbon and titanium powder. The upcycled watch features a strap made from high-performance rubber and upcycled carbon elements taken from retired AMF1 racecars while the sunray green dial is topped with a cross-hatching motif in homage to the marque’s “AM” badge of 1921. The watch features open-worked hands to showcase notes of sportiness. The hands, in fact, mirror the hollowed-out components found in sportscars, while the counterweight on the central chronograph hand resembles side strakes used on Aston Martin road cars.
IWC Pilot Chronograph 41 Edition Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team
IWC Schaffhausen has been the official engineering partner of the Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS Formula One™ Team since 2013. Strengthening the collaboration, IWC introduced the Pilot’s Watch Chronograph 41 Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One™ Team back in 2022. And now, has unveiled a new version of the timepiece with a new eye-catching “Miami Pink” rubber strap. The IWC-manufactured 69385 calibre powers the watch. The black dial is printed with luminescence matching the team’s signature shade of green to complement the distinctive design. Keeping in mind performance and durability, the watch is designed in a classic column-wheel design consisting of 242 individual parts, in the IWC-typical vertical arrangement of the subdials. The integrated EasX-CHANGE® allows users to change the straps quickly and easily at the touch of a button without additional tools.
Richard Mille RM UP-01 Ferrari
Continuing the trend of the thinnest watches, Ferrari and Richard Mille joined forces to create an exceptional ultra-flat timepiece that is just 1.75 millimetres thick. Limited to 150 pieces, the watch has a cushion-shaped face that is all bezel thanks to the limited thickness of the watch. The face is evidently designed to look like the dashboard of a sports car and features a small, sapphire-covered central dial, bordered by two integrated crowns. The watch is manually wound RMUP-01 movement and is water resistant up to 32.8 feet.
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