Breitling is celebrating the world of classic cars with a trio of unique watches that are inspired by the Ford Mustang, the Shelby Cobra, and the Chevrolet Corvette. Retailing for $47,000 a piece, the price appears to have been inspired by the classics, too.
The series builds on the Top Time Collection of chronographs, which can be used to, say, time your laps at the track. However, this collection takes the unusual step of adding a tourbillon movement to the watch.
Designed to increase the accuracy of a watch, a tourbillon mechanism mounts the escapement and the balance wheel in a rotating cage, to help fight the pull of gravity, which can affect a timepiece’s accuracy, when it is held in different positions.
Read: Porsche Design’s Latest Chronograph Pays Homage To 1970s Timepiece
The Top Time B21 Ford Mustang (above) distinguishes itself with a 43 mm bronze case, a titanium back, and a green dial that is inspired by the colors of the car’s first generation. Like the other watches, its chronometer is squircle-shaped, to elicit the rectangular speedometers of classic cars.
The Top Time B21 Shelby Cobra has a 44mm black ceramic case with a titanium back, crown, pushers, and buckle. The blue dial was selected to reflect the livery of Carroll Shelby’s iconic Anglo-American sports car.
Like the previous watch, the Top Time B21 Chevrolet Corvette (below) has a 44mm black ceramic case with a titanium back, crown, pushers, and buckle. However, its dial is made of walnut burl and together with the perforated leather racing strap pays homage to the steering wheel and dashboard inlays of the Corvette.
“We are thrilled to introduce a tourbillon to the Top Time Classic Cars series,” says Breitling CEO Georges Kern. “There is no better expression of Breitling’s expertise in making precision tool watches that combine functionality with sophistication and style. Like the cars it represents, the Top Time B21 Classic Cars Chronograph Tourbillon is all about its design and its engine.”
