Chopard celebrates three decades of partnership with the Mille Miglia race, la corsa più bella del mondo which is raced over a 1,600 km loop running from Brescia to Rome and back.
This unique alliance in the world of classic motorsport, which reflects Chopard Co-President Karl-Friedrich Scheufele’s passion for classic cars, continues with the Mille Miglia 2019 Race Edition.
The Case and Dial
The watch has a two tone case configuration, in 18k rose gold and stainless steel. Sized at 44 mm, the watch leans towards a more masculine size, matched also with its hefty case.
A benefit of its size is a water resistance of 100 meters, made possible also by a screw-down crown. The dial is a ruthenium gray color obtained by galvanic treatment, azured finish white decals with gray and black flange – gold-plated hour markers coated with Super-LumiNova.
It features the 3 chronograph subdials, with seconds at 9. At the 3 o’clock position, the dial houses a date aperture with magnification on the glass.
The motorsports theme resonates with the watch’s design. Chopard cuts a steering wheel logo on the crown, and has the pushers debossed with a pedal texture.
A perforated leather strap with folding clasp completes the motorsports look. The back of the strap is a rubber layer with tyre tread pattern. This is both functional, for waterproofing and breathability but also looks cool without looking like a Hublot Big Bang.
A closed caseback hides the movement with an engraved Mille Miglia engraving in its place. The watch is a limited edition of 250 pieces.
The Movement
Featuring a 48-hour power reserve and a stop seconds function, this COSC-certified self-winding mechanical chronograph movement oscillates at a frequency of 28,800 vibrations per hour (4 Hz). Given the case thickness and the subdial layout, the watch as you may have guessed it, uses a caliber based on the Valjoux 7750.
Concluding Thoughts
The Chopard Mille Miglia 2019 Race Edition is mostly attractive and well-executed. It is a limited edition of 250 pieces and is priced at US$10,900. Considering motorsports themed watches, one can’t help but think of alternatives from TagHeuer like the Monaco, Carrera, from Zenith and even Omega’s Speedy. Regular steel model Zeniths and Omegas are lower priced than the Chopard and offer iconic in-house chronograph movements. That said Chopard’s Mille Miglia benefits from an exclusivity – smaller production number and it may be more special to those who love the Mille Miglia race. But again, as much as we try to favor the entry level Chopard watches, we much prefer the more premium L.U.C line. Possibly a rule for the more learned (and affluent) collectors, if adding a Chopard timepiece, go for the Fleurier made – the QF L.U.C models.
