A few years ago we wrote about the Ralph Lauren Automotive watch, a watch inspired by Ralph Lauren’s personal 1938 Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic Coupe classic sports car. The fashion design house has now added 5 new watches to its Automotive watch line, all inspired by the 1938 Bugatti.
The great thing about Ralph Lauren is that he’s like us; he loves cars, watches, and craftsmanship. His Automotive timepieces are a testament to his love of cars.
‘I’ve always been inspired by automotive design — the materials, the lines, but also the power and functionality. Cars are like art — moving art — an accomplishment in mechanics and precision.’ —Ralph Lauren
The main attraction in the collection is the RL Automotive Skeleton watch, featuring the brand’s first skeletonized movement. Not only does the dial let you look into the movement, the caseback is also see-through, giving you a great look at all the beautifully hand-crafted pieces of the mechanical movement.
The Ralph Lauren RL Automotive Skeleton watch comes in a 44.8 mm wide and 11.20 mm thick black gunmetal steel case that has been shot-blasted to give it satin matte finish. The all black background really pushes out the beautifully finished amboyna burl wood bezel, showing the intricate patterns in the aged wood. The bezel is attached to the case with six metal screws.
The skeletonized dial is pretty simple, with a pair of black-oxidized hands, coated with beige Super-LumiNova, an azure pattern sub-dial for the seconds with Arabic numerals at the 6 o’clock position, and a beige “RL” logo on a matte black galvanized azure sub-dial at the 12 o’clock position. The watch is attached to the wrist with black alligator leather straps.
The RL Automotive Skeleton watch is powered by a customized IWC hand-wound mechanical movement, the caliber RL1967. The mechanical movement beats at 18,000 vibrations per hour and comes with a 45 hour power reserve.
The other black watch is the RL Automotive timepiece, which has a 44.8 mm wide case with also an Amboyna burl wood bezel. The dial is black with Arabic numerals and a seconds sub-dial at the 6 o’clock position. This watch is powered by an IWC mechanical movement, the same movement found in the original Automotive watch.
The remaining three new watches in the collection have stainless steel cases, featuring elm burl wood dials. The Automotive Chronograph features a dial with three sub-dials and two pushers on the case, this watch is powered by a Jaeger-LeCoultre movement. The last two watches in the collection are the Automotive Chronometer watches in two sizes, 45 and 39 mm cases.
To view the entire Ralph Lauren collection, visit the official site at ralphlaurenwatches.com.
