ReviewChopard Classic Racing Mille Miglia 2016 XL Race Edition: Inspired by the World of Classic Racing
One of the very few watches that can pull off being worn on and off the race track with an equal amount of style and dignity.
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As the partner and official timekeeper for the famous Mille Miglia classic car rally since 1988, it comes as no surprise that Chopard introduced the Chopard Classic Racing Mille Miglia 2016 XL Race Edition watch. Limited to just 1000 pieces worldwide, the watch was introduced this year at Baselworld 2016. Since they first got together, Chopard has continuously manufactured timepieces inspired by the world of classic racing. The brand even has a fully dedicated watch collection to the famous race and will (hopefully) continue to do so in the future.
First a little something about the Mille Miglia
Before we jump right into reviewing the timepiece, let us first understand the history of the Mille Miglia Series and unfold the inspiration of the watches. The Mille Miglia also known as “the world’s most beautiful race” is one of the most celebrated car series organized today. Reserved for classic and vintage cars only, the larger than life car series, nicknamed “la corsa più bella del mondo”, features 400 teams. The race track stretches across a thousand miles (around 1600 km) between Brescia and Rome.
The historical partnership between Chopard and Mille Miglia
Since the inception of Mille Miglia, Chopard has been closely associated with the classic car rally. Its involvement stemmed from Chopard’s Co-president – Karl-Friedrich Scheufele’s immense passion for collectible watches and cars. The partnership started by Karl-Friedrich Scheufele back in 1988 continues till date, and will hopefully continue to do so. The Mille Miglia collection from Chopard is a true representation of a classic racing style with speed, precision, energy and a hint of definitive elegance.
Introducing the Chopard Mille Miglia 2016 XL Race Edition
The Chopard Mille Miglia 2016 XL Race Edition is a classic representation of the historical race, drawing inspiration from cars that took part between 1927 and 1940. It has a sleek and sophisticated design accompanied with innovative mechanism wrapped in the spirit of Italian competition. Showcasing a magnitude of precision, prowess and performance, the Chopard Mille Miglia 2016 XL Race Edition is a rare gem in the world of inspired timepieces.
The Case and Case Back: Where size isn’t an issue
At a whopping 46mm case diameter, the Chopard Mille Miglia 2016 XL Race Edition is unarguably the largest Mille Miglia chronograph from Chopard. It is truly inspired by the vintage dashboard instruments used earlier during classic racing. Perfectly round, the stainless steel, fully polished case imbibes a combination of sporty and elegant appeal. The presence of the piston pushers, a vintage wheel hub-shaped crown, and long, straight lugs further enhances the sporty-ness of the timepiece. Despite its measurements – 54 mm in length, 15 mm in thickness and an 8.5 mm steel crown (embossed with a vintage steering wheel motif), the watch does sit well on any wrist size.
Fitted with a see-through sapphire crystal, the screw-down case back enables the wearer to witness the intricate workings of the movement. The case back is also decorated with a “Rossa Corsa” red arrow-shaped Mille Miglia logo, branding the watch as a true sports timepiece.
The Busy Dial of the Chopard Mille Miglia 2016 XL Race Edition:
At first glance, the overall effect of the dial is very busy like all “racing” chronographs. Ironically though, the dial is perfectly readable. You might ask why? Well, just for us to understand better, let us divide the dial into three sections: the outer, the middle and the inner part.
Outer part: Unlike other racing chronographs, Chopard decided to include the tachymetric scale on the dial itself, rather than the bezel, taking advantage of the huge size of the timepiece. Printed in rather small white markings, the tachymetric bezel resides on the sloped edge (flange) of the dial creating a sense of depth. It also allows the wearer to use it comfortably without any hassle.
Middle Part: Just inside the flange is the seconds track in white. To make reading easier for the wearer, the seconds track has been split into 4 segments which correspond with the 4-Hertz frequency of the watch.
Inner Part: This includes the chronograph sub-dials, date window and the hour markers. The lume-filled, wide Arabic numerals in white are complemented with the barely noticeable, circular, satin-brushed finishing on the overall black dial. The inner part serves as the perfect backdrop for the snailed, velvet finished grey and black sub-dials creating a stark contrast with minimal colour variation.
Located at 9 and 3 o’clock respectively, are the 12-hour and 30-minute chronograph sub-dial in grey with rhodium-plated steel baton-shaped hands. The third sub-dial at 6 o’clock is different with a snailed, velvet finished, black colour, displaying the continuous second. The date window has been placed between 4 and 5 o’clock. Right below the 12 o’clock marker you can find the appropriately sized “Rossa Corsa” red arrow-shaped Mille Miglia logo.
Lume-filled, centrally mounted stainless steel hands:
Chopard is a brand that pays close attention to the minute details of a timepiece and the Chopard Mille Miglia 2016 XL Race Edition, does not disappoint. The centrally mounted, luminescent, stainless steel hour and minute hands are baton-shaped. The long, bright red, sweep-seconds hand stretches out almost to the edge of the case which enables the wearer to easily time and read the tachymeter scale.
The In-house Movement: What makes this watch tick?
The Chopard Mille Miglia 2016 XL Race Edition Chronograph is powered by an in-house chronograph movement: Caliber 03.05-C. It offers 60 hours of power reserve which runs at 4 Hertz (28,800 kph) and is COSC chronometer certified. A truly revolutionary movement, the Caliber 03.05-C is also equipped with a column wheel-operated chronograph. Sized at 28mm, the Caliber 03.05-C perfectly fits into the case and offers functions which include hours, minutes, and small seconds. It also includes the chronograph hours (12-hour counter), minutes (30-minute counter), and seconds (1/4 of a second accuracy) along with a date function.
Apart from the astounding technical attributes, the movement is pleasing to the eyes as well. It incorporates a design that ensures smooth functioning for the various functions involved. The mainplate is finished with a perlage decoration with chamfered and polished edges. It also features polished screw heads with a screwed gold chaton that adds a nice touch to the already beautiful movement. Now we know why a see-through caseback was incorporated into the timepiece!
Strap:
With the Chopard Mille Miglia 2016 XL Race Edition Chronograph being inspired by car racing, one would expect the timepiece to be bound to a rubber strap or at least a “perforated” leather strap. Wrong! Throwing a welcome curveball to stereotypes, the Chopard Mille Miglia 2016 XL Race Edition watch is available in a thick, Suportlo® calfskin leather strap with a stainless steel, Chopard logo engraved folding clasp. The colour of the strap falls somewhere between brown and burgundy that makes it beautifully unique and versatile.
Final thoughts:
The Chopard Mille Miglia 2016 XL Race Edition watch is truly “a modern timepiece with a retro car themed design”. Catering both to sports fanatics and others too, the watch exudes a modernistic appeal merged with nostalgic reminiscence of vintage dashboards on cars. Once on your wrist, it feels comfortable, grand and practical. A perfect watch to adorn “on” and “off” the track!
Prices & Availability:
The Chopard Mille Miglia 2016 XL Race Edition is priced competitively at Rs. 735,000 and is available in a numbered limited edition of just 1000 pieces worldwide.
What did you like most about this particular watch? Let us know in the comments section below!
