Many watch companies have produced timepieces in partnership with automobile brands. Only one, however, can claim as direct a line to automotive heritage as Porsche Design, founded by Professor F.A. Porsche, who also happens to be the originator of one of the world’s most iconic sports cars, the Porsche 911. The luxury automaker rolled out the eighth-generation 911 earlier this week, and alongside it a new limited-edition companion for its drivers’ wrists: the Porsche Design 911 Chronograph Timeless Machine.
The watch, the newest addition to the Porsche Design Studio’s flagship 1919 watch collection, features a number of visual elements hearkening back to the car, including the sleekly rendered silhouette of the Porsche 911 at 3 o’clock on the dial, under the Porsche Design logo and above the date window at 4:30. The dial itself is notably expansive, framed by a very narrow and low-profile bezel and protected by a hard-coated, convex sapphire crystal with seven layers of antiglare coating. The phrase “Timeless Machine” a reference to the sports car and its place in automotive history, appears on the “function indicator” subdial at 9 o’clock. The dial’s use of white hands and indices against a contrasting black background is inspired by a Porsche dashboard, while the chronograph subdials at 12 and 6 o’clock are executed in the style of speedometers.
The case, measuring 42 mm in diameter and just shy of 15 mm thick, is made of bead-blasted, hypoallergenic titanium and transitions elegantly into the smoothly curving, cut-out lugs that attach the timepiece to its strap, constructed from the same leather and yarn used in the interiors of Porsche sports cars. The screw-down caseback includes a sapphire window offering a view of the movement, a self-winding ETA Valjoux 7750 enhanced with Porsche Design’s “Icon” rotor and storing a power reserve of 48 hours. While some may have preferred that Porsche Design outfit this limited edition with one of its newer, in-house movements — such as the one used in another special edition, last year’s 911 Turbo S Exclusive Series — it’s worth noting that the 7750 has historical pedigree as the integrated-chronograph caliber that powered the very first Porsche Design wristwatch in 1972.
Presented in a special box with a limited-edition badge, the Porsche Design 911 Chronograph Timeless Machine Limited Edition will be available at retail in April 2019, limited to just 911 pieces and priced at $5,411.
