My Favourite Watch Under £1000!
,Today’s spotlight will discuss my favourite watch under £1000! Hopefully this piece will enable our new readers, who are just entering the horology scene, to have a sense of access to a good and very interesting first watch, or offer our well versed readers some insight on a different reasonably priced piece.
The name Autodromo will be foreign to some but quite well known to automobile enthusiasts. They’re a watch manufacturer founded by petrolhead Bradley Price with the distinct goal of crafting timepieces that express the spirit of motoring. Their watches generally draw aesthetic inspirations from the golden era of racing events in the 20th century. This article will discuss the Autodromo Group B watch, which is no longer in production - but still readily available to be purchased online in the ball parks of £600. Launched in 2015, Autodromo Group B draws inspiration from the era of rally car racing in the 80s. Group B in FIA World Rally Championship was one of the most brutal and extreme forms of rallying that ever existed - predominantly due to the fact the vehicles were extremely light but had ridiculous levels of of high horsepower with little to no regulations in the races on speed and safety. Group B only existed for 4 years between 1982 - 1986 and was promptly ended after an accident at a Group B rally in Portugal, when a Ford RS200 uncontrollably ploughed into the crowd leaving 31 injured and 3 fatalities - this lead to the Rally’s governing body to end the Group B division completely and opt for safer and more regulated rallying. Given this bizarre story of 80s rallying the Autodromo Group B has a hefty hype to live up to if the brand claims this timepiece has a link to this era. The watch itself is very aesthetically pleasing as the dial is the first thing that hits you. Autodromo highlights that the dial was inspired by the tech gauge of Lancia’s Group B car. The watch has a perfect size of 39mm, which will sit well on anyone’s wrist and is extremely thin with 9mm thickness. The lightness of the watch at 52 grams made with a titanium case - highlights another link to the extremely light vehicles as part of the Group B era of rallying. The Group B is the lightest watch ever made by Autodromo. The watches case is brushed on both ends and has polished edges. The watch is made by two distinct pieces with integrated lugs. The watch offers a Miyota 9015 movement under the dial and 42 hours of power reserve. This is a phenomenal looking piece with a reliable Japanese movement. At such reasonable resale value this is definitely a piece to own with a remarkable automobile rallying story attached to it.
Ilkay Olmez
Co-Founder & Editor