Fratello On Air: The Curious Case Of Car Watches

Welcome back to another episode of Fratello On Air! This week, we talk about car watches, a curious subgenre within our hobby. Sure, the automobile industry is massive and has an equally huge fan base, but collaborations between watch and car brands often misfire. This draws us into a conversation about what we think of when pairing our vehicles with a watch. Whether it’s for driving or attending a related event, what works best?

Yes, in this episode, we tackle a challenging topic. Or, for some of our readers and listeners, perhaps it isn’t a consideration at all. Car watches have been a focal point since wristwatches were first created. Angled dials meant to help drivers tell time at a glance have been produced by many marques. Then, an obvious complication associated with cars and racing is the chronograph. This is the most common platform for pieces made for Formula One teams and other automotive brands. We find many of these too on the nose, with overt branding that may only appeal to an owner of a car from the related maker. So, what should we wear when driving our fun cars or when heading off to a get-together or race?

Handgelenkskontrolle

Folks, it’s hot out there, so we kick off our show by talking about the oppressive heat and the need for more air conditioning. Then, we mention the World Cup and all the great stories we’ve seen about visitors enjoying fun restaurants and customs in America. Once again, the Scots have endeared themselves to the locals. Travel-wise, Balazs just returned from Los Angeles, where he organized a Chrono24 get-together with our friends from the Spirit of Time podcast. Nearly 60 people came together at a Pasadena brewery to share their passion for watches. Mike visited the Icons of Porsche: Sunstede Silverstone Edition event celebrating Porsche’s 75th anniversary in the UK. It was an incredible showing of cars and car culture. It’s also what led us to our main topic — car watches.

For the Handgelenkskontrolle, Balazs is wearing one of the watches he took to California. It’s none other than his prized Rolex GMT-Master 1675. Mike is still on a vintage chronograph kick and is wearing his Lemania-powered Meylan chronograph with a decimal scale.

Omega Speedmaster advertisement

Car watches

Current and past horological catalogs are littered with car watches. You know, when a watch brand decides to sponsor a racing team or become the official partner of a prestigious luxury automaker. Very few are good, while most are tacky or overbranded. So, on the heels of the Porsche event, it got us thinking about the right pieces to wear when enjoying all things petrolhead. We both wholeheartedly agree that Heuer is the unequivocal leader for motorsport-related driving and race-inspired timepieces. However, it’s the surprising Omega Speedmaster, in any form, that checks in as a no-nonsense racing-related model. This is despite its fame as a space watch.

Other watches, including the Amida Digitrend, Omega Chronostop, and the Vacheron Constantin American 1921, arise as driver-focused pieces. Regarding newer ones, mechaquartz movements have helped inspire some attractive, robust models. The Bamford Mayfair 2.0 is a fun, brightly colored chronograph with an interchangeable case ready for any event. We close out with our ultimate “one and done” watch to wear for anything car-related. For Mike, the Heuer Carrera 2447 is pure perfection. Balazs has also chosen a Heuer, but he sees the Monaco as the ultimate car watch.

Thanks for listening to today’s episode! As always, feel free to let us know if you have topics for future episodes.