If you ask a random car enthusiast what one of their other hobbies is, there’s a good chance they’ll tell you they collect watches, particularly those of the Swiss automatic variety. The connection makes sense. Both types of machines are the products of advanced mechanical engineering with precise tolerances and strategically chosen materials. Automakers are aware of this link between their vehicles and horology. That’s why you frequently see car companies collaborating with timepiece manufacturers. Bugatti has been doing it for 100 years.
Back in 1925, Swiss watchmaker Mido, which was known for its automobile-themed pieces, released a collection that was clearly inspired by Bugatti’s vehicles (one of which is shown above). The run of less than 100 watches (90 across four series, per one auction house’s count) featured a gold case shaped like Bugatti’s horseshoe-style radiator grille with a red “EB” emblem at the top. According to Bugatti, company founder Ettore Bugatti himself offered many of them to his “best drivers and mechanics as well as his family.” One piece from the first series of 54 watches sold at auction in 2023 for £55,000 ($69,533 in today’s money).
In 1932, Ettore commissioned Breguet to create clocks for the Type 41 Royale, which the company calls “the most luxurious car ever built.” In total, Breguet produced nine chrome-plated brass chronographs, prominently displayed in the middle of the steering wheel.
The 2000s marked the debut of the 987-horsepower, quad-turbo W16-powered Veyron, which could reach a top speed of 253 mph. Bugatti had Parmigiani Fleurier commemorate the accomplishment with the Bugatti Type 370 timepiece. Developed over five years and released in 2004, the Type 370 had a transversely set movement and consisted of 374 parts, all arranged in a design that’s instantly recognizable. More collaborations followed before the two companies ended their partnership in 2019.
That same year, Bugatti switched to Jacob & Co. to craft new horological masterpieces. The first of those, the Twin Turbo Furious Bugatti Edition, was appropriately complex for a watch inspired by a modern Bugatti. Its 832-component caliber JCFM05 movement had a “pitboard indicator” that allowed the wearer to compare up to five consecutive lap times, a 48-hour power reserve, and “a pair of flying, triple-axis tourbillons, a decimal minute repeater on Cathedral gongs and a monopusher chronograph.”
What came next made the connection between high-end watches and ultra-exotic cars undeniable: The Jacob & Co. Bugatti Chiron Tourbillon’s most distinctive feature was its own miniature W16 engine.
The new V16-powered Bugatti Tourbillon led to two very different time-oriented pieces. One is the titanium, sapphire, and ruby skeletonized instrument cluster made in collaboration with Swiss watchmakers.
The other is a watch, of course. As its name implies, the Jacob & Co. Bugatti Tourbillon has a tourbillon that safeguards the watch’s accuracy against the effects of gravity. The 250-unit production run features 10 design elements inspired by its namesake car. The watchmaker states, “The Bugatti Tourbillon case shape is the same as Bugatti’s car, with the front grille flanked by two side radiator inlets. The case sides show two large sapphire openings, shaped and tinted like the car’s side windows. The sub-dials are designed like the car’s dashboard and rpm counter. Its automaton emulates the car’s new V16 engine block, down to its exhaust manifolds. Even the winding crown mimics the finishings on the control knobs.”
Every Bugatti is easy to spot, but the next time you’re at a concours, you might have to look a little harder for one of the Bugattis mentioned here – and to see one of the miniature “engines” in action.