BY Jovan K
Chopard is among the few brands who have a deep-rooted association with the world of Motorsports. Chopard has not only been a great admirer but also the official sponsor of the annual Italian Mille Miglia racing event for about 30 years now. The brands Mille Miglia collection comprises of automotive-inspired timepieces and is now getting a new family member in the form of the Mille Miglia Classic Chronograph Zagato 100th Anniversary. Featuring a striking red dial this new sports chronograph pays a tribute to both the Mille Miglia race and car designer Andrea Zagato.
Zagato is a famous automotive design house founded in Italy in 1919 and Andrea Zagato is the third generation from his family to lead the company. Cars from Zagato share a historic association with the Mille Miglia racing event and so does Chopard. This common passion for cars and mechanics led to a close-knit association between the two brands. So, what could have been a better gift than a racing-themed watch to celebrate 100 years of the Zagato brand.
Chopard is well known for making use of bright colors on its sports watches and the Mille Miglia Zagato is no different. The bright red lacquered dial on this watch is in line with the racing theme and seems to have been picked up straight from a sports car catalog. There is a repeating Z pattern throughout the dial which along with the applied Z label at 12 highlights the Zagato connection of this watch. There are three subdials at 3, 6 and 9 for running seconds, elapsed chronograph hours and minutes respectively and a neatly tucked date window between 4 and 5. A combination of applied batons and small circular plots has been used for hours whereas the minute/ chronograph seconds track has been printed in white providing a nice contrast against the red background. The broad hour and minute hand have been nicely faceted and filled with luminous paint for low light visibility whereas the rest of the hands have a stick style shape.
Made from stainless steel the case on this watch has a diameter of 42mm and a thickness of 12.67mm. These are great dimensions for a modern chronograph, especially the height which should make this watch sit comfortably on a variety of wrists. There is a sapphire crystal on both the top as well as the back and the case is water resistant to 50 meters which seems to be a little on the lower side. Powering the watch is a 37-jewel automatic movement which operates at a frequency of 4 Hz and offers a power reserve of around 42 Hz. While it has not been specified anywhere the layout does seem to suggest that it is a modified 2894 movement. It has been nicely decorated using blued screws, Geneva stripes and perlage on the bridges. The sapphire case back gives a nice view of the movement and has the Zagato branding at the center along with the 1000 Miglia symbol and the limited-edition number surrounding it.
The Chopard Mille Miglia Classic Chronograph Zagato 100th Anniversary is a great looking sports chronograph that honors a great racing event and a famous automobile design house. The watch would come attached to a black calfskin strap and would be limited to just 100 pieces. The retail price on this bad boy is CHF 6,680.
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