Dein erstes Forum » Chopard Mille Miglia Ref. 8915 BRG Watch

Time Machine: Chopard Mille Miglia Ref. 8915 BRG Watch Explains Authenticity



Making a watch truly relevant to a particular pastime, subculture or market segment is an extremely long and arduous process. Ideally, the watch in question should be associated with the desired location for decades or more, with thousands of hours and millions of dollars of marketing efforts invested to reinforce that message – Omega, for example, spent more than half a century relentlessly promoting the Speedmaster as the first watch to land on the moon, making it the preferred choice for space enthusiasts. In short, authenticity is a slow and expensive game in the watch industry, which makes Chopard's Mille Miglia collection all the more interesting. It's hard to find a watch with more automotive and motorsports street cred than the Mille Miglia, with the possible exception of TAG Heuer, which has been present at the world's most famous racetracks and on the wrists of racers since the 1960s. In contrast, the Mille Miglia is relatively new, without the same marketing giants to back it up, and its racing image is mainly centered around a vintage road race in central Italy. However, in the eyes of true automotive connoisseurs, the Mille Miglia collection has built a solid reputation since its launch in 1988. This circa-2008 Chopard Mille Miglia ref. 8915 BRG is the ideal example of the genuine passion, fanatical attention to detail and exceptional build quality that give the collection a true racing feel that other automotive-inspired timepieces can hardly match.

The first ingredient in Chopard’s recipe for Mille Miglia automotive authenticity is sincerity. The Mille Miglia was not driven by cold market research or a desire to advertise to a specific customer base, but rather by Chopard president Karl-Friedrich Scheufele’s personal involvement in the Italian Mille Miglia classic car rally since the late 80s. As such, this watch collection is more or less a passion project for Scheufele, a way to sponsor the event he loves and create a more meaningful keepsake for the competitors. This genuine, unabashed passion for the subject of classic racing is reflected in the product range and the company’s ongoing support of rallying each year.

This genuine love of classic cars and the look and feel of vintage race cars also allows the Chopard Mille Miglia to pick up on subtle visual nuances and stylistic cues that can easily be missed by the automotive layman. The Mille Miglia ref. 8915 BRG showcases this well, and few of its kind can match it. Take the dial, for example. This watch is arguably the most modern and sporty of Chopard’s mainline Mille Miglia chronographs (excluding the beefy, aggressive Mille Miglia GTS sub-line), but even here the modern cues are softened by mid-century Italianate styling. The main dial’s wide, angular Arabic hour numerals are pure late-2000s sporting style, in a form that’s nearly identical to the font used on the contemporary Ferrari F430 Scuderia tachometer. Likewise, the polished straight sword hands and stark white lume give the design a distinctly modern feel. Yet elements like the instrument-like silver-white outer seconds scale, silvery blue subdials, and square, vintage-instrument-style subdial numerals all temper the ref. 8915 BRG’s characteristic modernity with a touch of ’50s warmth.

Chopard’s use of light and color, however, is where this dial truly shines. A set of wide, mirror-polished subdial trim rings make the Mille Miglia feel more sophisticated and luxurious than some of its more tool-focused rivals, and the combination of creamy white and vivid red for the arrow-shaped central chronograph seconds hand enhances the retro-sport feel. The high-gloss main dial surface is also a real conversation starter in its own right. In most lighting conditions, this hue appears a simple, demure black, but in sunlight or bright, direct light it reveals itself to be an extremely deep, highly saturated green. Admittedly, the ref. 8915 BRG’s eponymous British Racing Green is a far cry from the more verdant hues familiar from international motorsports like Lotus and Aston Martin, but this deeper, more restrained hue draws inspiration from much older sources. This color is a departure from the bold British Racing Green hues of the 50s and 60s, and harkens back to the bohemian aristocrats of the 1920s and early 30s who dominated the 24 Hours of Le Mans, driving giant supercharged Bentleys that were also painted a near-black green. To non-car enthusiasts, this color choice is not obvious when creating a "British Racing Watch," but seasoned car enthusiasts will appreciate the deep knowledge that went into this choice.

The case of the Chopard Mille Miglia ref. 8915 BRG continues this fusion of vintage and modern automotive inspirations. At 40mm wide, this watch strikes a pretty good compromise between sporty-chic and vintage-compact, and will suit a wide range of wrist sizes. The case itself is a classic, simple shape, with clean case sides, straight lugs that curve down without chamfers, and a gently domed bezel. With such an essential shape, every subtle visual element counts, and Chopard’s sense of refinement and extreme attention to detail pays off handsomely here. For example, the deliberate full-brushing finish gently accentuates the subtle roundness of the wide case surfaces, whereas polishing might have been too dramatic. The brand’s choice to use titanium rather than stainless steel here is also an interesting one. Obviously, titanium wasn’t a common watchmaking material during the heyday of the Mille Miglia in the 50s, but the material’s darker color and lighter weight help prevent the ref. 8915 BRG from feeling too decorative. However, the engraved tachymeter scale around the bezel is classic vintage sports chronograph style, and the squared vintage-style font is cleverly combined with the chronograph subdials. Chopard has fitted this case with a printed sapphire exhibition caseback, and despite the sporty look of this watch, it’s only water-resistant to 50 meters.

Like many of its modern descendants, the Chopard Mille Miglia ref. 8915 BRG is powered by the reliable ETA 2894-2 automatic chronograph movement. While it may not be as exotic or horologically appealing as an in-house powerplant, the 2894-2 is a reliable platform with excellent performance, including COSC-certified chronometer accuracy and a 42-hour power reserve at 28,800 bph. Like the rest of the watch, the 2894-2’s finishing is excellent, with gilded engraving throughout the dial, clear and even perlage on the bridges, dark blue screws, and a dark-coated signature rotor topped with the brand’s familiar Côtes de Genève.

Much of the car-enthusiast appeal of Chopard’s Mille Miglia collection lies in its strap design. For the Mille Miglia ref. 8915 BRG, the brand originally equipped the watch with a thick, supple, large-bore rally strap in black leather with dark green stitching. In keeping with the original limited edition strap, this one features a modern version of the collection’s signature tread-patterned rubber strap. Its texture is taken directly from a 50s Dunlop bias-ply racing tire, another thoughtful, authentic automotive cue that those outside the classic car community may overlook or fail to recognize.

Creating a watch that truly fits a community or subculture is a deceptively difficult task. It can take a great deal of effort in design and marketing to not appear fake or pandering, but nothing is more important than a true passion and love for the subject matter when it comes to creating authenticity. Few watches demonstrate how far this passion, attention to detail, and quality execution will take a product line as the Chopard Mille Miglia, and the Mille Miglia ref. 8915 BRG showcases the depth and breadth of Choard’s automotive knowledge more than most. In addition to being a striking piece of watchmaking, it’s a poignant reminder to brands and enthusiasts alike of how much thought and labor goes into truly speaking to a subculture.