Just released by Parmigiani Fleurier is the new Tonda PF Sport collection, a more casual and, well, sporty iteration of the Tonda PF collection that will replace the Tonda GT. Coming in a time and date or chronograph versions in either steel or rose gold, the Tonda PF Sport watches all come on a new strap but also include several design changes that stylistically place the collection solidly between the Tonda PF and the now outgoing Tonda GT collections it will be replacing. While it’s sad to see the GT collection go so soon, it does make sense for Parmigiani to streamline the Tonda PF collection and keep things simple.
Note that I was only able to see/photograph the chronograph, and that photos of the PF Sport Automatic are provided by Parmigiani.
Both the PF Sport Automatic and Chronograph have a knurled bezel like the Tonda PF but done with 160 notches rather than 225. The steel models forego platinum for the bezel which keeps in line with the more casual attitude here. They also carry over the hand-done “cloud triangulaire” guilloché from the GT collection as well as lumed hands and indices.
I was able to get some hands-on time with the steel chronograph iteration so let’s begin with that. Done with a panda dial layout, the case measures 42mm wide and 12.9mm thick with 100 m of water resistance. It shares the same PF070 COSC-certified movement as the standard PF chronograph which operates at 5 Hz and has a 65-hour power reserve. You’ll notice that the 22k gold rotor is redesigned as well with inspiration coming from the steering wheel of the Ferrari 250 GTO. As with the existing Tonda PF Chronograph, the date window is at 4:30 and done in black which contrasts with the dial. You could say it’s like a Panda’s version of a beauty mark a la Cindy Crawford.
The simpler Tonda PF Sport Automatic takes a similar approach of applying the sportier design elements of the outgoing GT to create a more everyday casual leisure watch. Note that this isn’t a repackaging of the Tonda PF with micro-rotor but rather uses the PF 770 movement we saw used in the 36mm Tonda PF Automatic released last year. The PF770 operates at 4 Hz and has a 60-hour power reserve with the same stylized rotor as the chronograph. The case measures 41mm wide and 9.8m thick with 100 m of water resistance. This larger case makes for a smaller exhibition window than I’d like to see but there’s really not much else to find fault with here. Personally, I would likely add the premium of a couple of thousand dollars to get the standard Tonda PF micro-rotor with platinum bezel and bracelet but the PF Sport Automatic will certainly appeal to a lot of consumers looking for that more casual leisure watch.
All the Tonda PF Sport watches come on a Cordura-treated rubber strap that is both comfortable and really does seem tailor made for these pieces as there’s not even a hint of a gap anywhere. I think the consolidation of the sportier Tonda GT collection into these Tonda PF Sport watches makes for a more consistent design language (even though I always had a soft spot for the big date windows on the GT). Price for the Parmigiani Tonda PF Sport Automatic in steel is $21,300 and $38,200 in rose gold while the Tonda PF Sport Chronograph is $29,000 in steel and $50,200 in rose gold.
To learn more, visit Parmigiani Fleurier, here.
Love this brand !