It’s almost Christmas ! Why not offer or be offered a beautiful car-related watch to display your passion all year round? To guide you in your choice, here is a selection of 2022 watches in all price ranges that will allow you to find your happiness between classic or original watches, watchmaking successes or confidential watches. Part 1 of 2022: watches priced below €1,000.
Lip Rallye 41 mm Ninja meca-quartz
French watchmaker Lip offers a modernized reissue of its iconic bicompax rally chronograph launched in 1969 for motorsport. This “Ninja” version takes up a vintage design with a blue dial whose two counters united on a band evoke a dashboard and the minute track recalls a checkered flag. It adds a tachymeter scale to measure speed. It is driven by a modern motor combining the quartz for the time with a mechanical module for the chronograph function.
41mm 316L stainless steel case; Time Module VK64 mecha-quartz movement; functions: hours, minutes, chronograph, date, 24 hours; white and blue bicompax dial; mineral glass; micro-perforated leather strap; water resistant to 50m. Rally Collection; ref. 671812.
Prix : 299 €
Timex Q Timex Chronographe
Timex offers a reissue of chronographe Q Timex which it had designed for racing drivers in the 1970s. It is distinguished by its so-called “reversed Panda” tricompax dial which offers perfect reading of time measurements. The 41 mm case in brushed and polished steel is adorned with a tachymeter bezel allowing the calculation of an average speed and “mushroom” pushers in the shape of pistons. It is powered by a reliable and precise Japanese quartz movement.
40mm 316L stainless steel case; Epson YM12a quartz movement; functions: hours, minutes, seconds, chronograph, date, 24 hours; black tricompax dial; mineral glass; stainless steel strap; water resistant to 50m. Q-Timex collection.
Prix : 219 €
Arpiem Tribute TBL
The French brand Arpiem pays tribute to three great Brazilian drivers who marked the history of Formula 1: Ayrton Senna, Emerson Fittipaldi and Nelson Piquet. This vintage chronograph is distinguished by its two truncated counters reminiscent of racing car pressure gauges. It is powered by a high-performance Swiss quartz caliber and is worn on a green and yellow nylon strap. Its carbon dial features the national colors of Brazil and the livery of Ayrton Senna’s helmet on the right-hand counter. Read here.
41mm 316L stainless steel case; Ronda Z50 quartz movement; functions: hours, minutes, seconds, chronograph, date; carbon-finish bicompax dial; anti-reflective crystal glass; green and yellow Nylon strap, water resistant to 100 m. Tribute collection, ref. TBL, limited edition of 750 pieces.
Prix : 315 €
Dan Henry 1972 Maverick Chronograph
Dan Henry offers a tricompax chronograph 1972 Maverick Chronograph reminiscent of the pilot’s watches of the 1970s-80s inspired by the Porsche Design Chronograph 1 (read here). This robust sporty piece in 316L steel adds a tachymeter scale to the internal bezel for calculating gears. The black dial is enhanced by a blue chronograph seconds hand. The engine is a quartz caliber which offers a useful “alarm” function on a daily basis. The caseback is engraved with the profile of the Ducati 750 Imola Desmo, an iconic racing motorcycle from the 1970s.
41 mm case in 316L steel; Miyota 0S80 quartz movement; functions: hours, minutes, seconds, chronograph, date, alarm; black tricompax dial; anti-reflective sapphire crystal; steel bracelet, water resistant to 50 m; Collection 1972, ref. Maverick Chronograph, limited edition of 1972 pieces.
Price: $350 (approx €342)
Yema Rallygraf Michel Vaillant
Yema has joined forces with the most famous cartoon racing driver by becoming the official watch of the Vaillante team in 2021. This neo-vintage design Rallygraf fits perfectly into the world of racing with two chronograph counters joined together into a brushed aluminum dashboard and tachometer bezel. It is powered by a powerful hybrid motor from Seiko, combining a quartz movement for the time with a mechanical module for the chronograph function. Read here.
39mm 316L stainless steel case; Seiko VK64 mecha-quartz movement; functions: hours, minutes, chronograph, date; white bicompax dial; domed mineral glass; microperforated leather strap, water resistant to 100 m. Rallygraf collection; ref. YMHF1572-MV.
Prix : 429 €
Forzo Drive King Chronograph Cream and Green Dial
The English watch brand Fozropartner of the American team Scuderia Cameron Glickenhaus, offers a collection of vintage chronographs inspired by motor racing. They are powered by a meca-quartz movement offering the precision of quartz and the nobility of a mechanical module for the chronograph. This version takes up the emblematic color of English sports cars on a cream dial enhanced with orange sporty touches. The compact 40mm case in 316L steel comes with a steel bracelet and “mushroom” pushers.
40mm 316L stainless steel case; Time Module VK64 mecha-quartz movement; functions: hours, minutes, chronograph, date, 24 hours; cream and green bicompax dial; anti-reflective sapphire crystal; 316L steel bracelet; water resistant to 100m. Drive King collection; ref. 12177, limited edition of 50 pieces.
Prix : 549 €
Depancel R-Series Cruiser
The Series-R Cruiser takes up the historic design of the first model launched by Depancel with an original case in the shape of a grille that evokes the great French prestige car manufacturers. It pays homage to the world of Café Racers with a dial that incorporates a power reserve indicator in the shape of a fuel gauge and a small second in the shape of a tachometer. The engine is a self-winding mechanical caliber whose meticulous finishes are visible through the transparent back.
42×36 mm case in 316L stainless steel; Miyota 9132 self-winding movement, 28,800 vibrations/hour frequency, 40-hour power reserve; functions: hours, minutes, seconds, power reserve, 24-hour indicator, date; blue bicompax dial; anti-reflective sapphire crystal; leather strap, water resistant to 50 m. Series-R collection.
Prix : 695 €
Black Goose MKII – Continental Teal
The French brand founded in 2016 by Marc-Olivier Rinaldi (read here) offers a new version of its watch MKII whose design is inspired by a tachometer. It is distinguished by its duck blue dial (Teal Livery), a color that continues on the perforated leather strap like the lighter spokes of the steering wheels of classic racing cars. The brand and model names are discreetly affixed in the timer. The engine is a powerful and precise automatic movement of Seiko origin.
42.5mm 316L stainless steel case; Seiko self-winding movement, 21,600 vibrations/hour frequency, 41-hour power reserve; functions: hours, minutes, seconds, date; blue dial; sapphire crystal; perforated leather strap, water resistant to 50 m. MKII collection, ref. Continental Teal, limited edition of 100 pieces.
Prix : 700 €
TW Steel GT11
TW Steel has always been inspired by motor racing and celebrates here the world championship of Rallyes WRC. This robust watch, made to fit on a pilot’s suit, has an imposing blue-plated case and a large crown that can be manipulated with racing gloves. It is also distinguished by its structured relief dial and its rubber strap enhanced with stitched Italian blue leather. The Swiss quartz engine offers an accurate 1/10th sec chronograph. The caseback is engraved with the FIA WRC logo.
47mm blue-plated 316L stainless steel case; Ronda 5030.D quartz movement; functions: hours, minutes, seconds, chronograph, date; blue tricompax dial; anti-reflective sapphire crystal; rubber and leather strap; water resistant to 100m. WRC collection; ref. GT11; limited edition of 1000 pieces.
Prix : 899 €
Ferro & Company 356 Double Main Vert
Iron & Company pays homage to the Porsche 356 with this watch created on the occasion of its 70th anniversary. Its black dial surrounded by a polished bezel echoes the design of the car’s tachometer characterized by a two-tone hatched area. The 43 mm case in 316L steel is extended by a “racing” strap in microperforated leather in harmony with the dial. To stick to the era of the 356, the brand has chosen a manual winding movement whose finishes are visible through the transparent back.
43mm 316L stainless steel case; hand-wound ETA 6498 movement, 18,000 vibrations/hour frequency, 46-hour power reserve; functions: hours, minutes, small seconds; black monocompax dial; anti-reflective sapphire crystal; microperforated leather strap, water resistant to 50 m. Collection 356; ref. Double Main Vert, limited edition of 100 pieces.
Prix : 986,95 €
To be continued: Christmas 2022, selection of automotive-related watches over €1,000
All the previous Christmas watch selections can be read here.