{"id":26276,"date":"2021-03-24T09:00:52","date_gmt":"2021-03-24T09:00:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.horbiter.com\/the-chopard-mille-miglia-classic-chronograph-racing-colours-edition-watches-hands-on\/"},"modified":"2021-11-26T14:58:34","modified_gmt":"2021-11-26T14:58:34","slug":"chopard-mille-miglia-classic-chronograph-racing-colours-edition-2018-watches-hands-on-horbiter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.horbiter.com\/en\/chopard-mille-miglia-classic-chronograph-racing-colours-edition-2018-watches-hands-on-horbiter\/","title":{"rendered":"The Chopard\u00a0Mille Miglia Classic Chronograph Racing Colours Edition watches hands-on"},"content":{"rendered":"

30 years have passed since the Mille Miglia<\/strong> race and Chopard<\/strong> crossed\u00a0their destinies and decided to build one of the most long-lasting\u00a0partnerships in the world of watch-making and one of the first and\u00a0most credible partnerships that put together the world of (vintage)\u00a0cars\u00a0and fine mechanics.<\/p>\n

\"Karl-Friedrich-Scheufele\"A vision, or simply the impulse of passion of\u00a0Karl Scheufele<\/strong>, who made the Mille Miglia<\/strong> race dramatically increase\u00a0the fame of Chopard<\/strong> as a brand of sports watches and, vice versa, the\u00a0Mille Miglia<\/strong> race benefit from the prestige of a prestigious partner.\u00a0The\u00a0Chopard Mille Miglia collection<\/strong> has grown over the years and has\u00a0multiplied, it has undergone all the generational transitions that\u00a0have made Chopard<\/strong> today\u2019s manufacturing company.<\/p>\n

\"Chopard-Mille-Miglia-2016-XL-Race-Edition\"The last time you\u00a0heard me talk about the Chopard Mille Miglia<\/strong> was in 2016<\/strong>, when I wrote\u00a0an article about the Chopard Mille Miglia 2016 XL Race Edition<\/span><\/strong><\/a> \u2013 the\u00a0peak of this collection, where Chopard<\/strong>\u00a0equipped this classic three-register-chrono with\u00a0a beautiful in-house built caliber and an oversized\u00a046mm<\/strong> case.<\/p>\n

The Chopard Mille Miglia Classic Chronograph Racing Colours Edition<\/h2>\n

At\u00a0Baselworld 2018<\/strong>, the classic of classics made its\u00a0return in a renewed edition and went back to its origins. Over the\u00a0course of the years, the Chopard Mille\u00a0Miglia<\/strong> has been re-edited in many\u00a0versions, even in a time only one;\u00a0in its original form, this\u00a0timepiece is a\u00a0chronograph with three counters and mushroom-type chrono buttons\u00a0inserted within a symmetrical case and a strap with the pattern of a\u00a0Dunlop<\/strong> tire from the 60s.<\/p>\n

\"Chopard-Mille-Miglia-Classic-Chronograph-Racing-Colours-Edition\"In general, after growing in size for years\u00a0\u2013 a process that has involved all brands \u2013 the chronograph is slowly\u00a0returning to more\u00a0reasonable dimensions and this makes even more\u00a0sense, when a classic sports chronograph features a case, whose\u00a0diameter is within the standard 42mm<\/strong> threshold.<\/p>\n

\"Chopard-Mille-Miglia-Classic-Chronograph-Racing-Colours-Edition-2\"The case is entirely\u00a0polished, the bezel is thick and rounded, the three counters \u201ccut<\/em>\u201d the\u00a0Arabic numerals\u00a0filled with SuperLuminova<\/strong>\u00ae and the font on the\u00a0registers is the same that you would find on the vintage dashboard counters\u00a0that equip\u00a0the cars that are driven during the Mille Miglia<\/strong> race.<\/p>\n

\"Chopard-Mille-Miglia-Classic-Chronograph-Racing-Colours-Edition-10\"Even\u00a0the hours and minutes counters are filled with SuperLuminova<\/strong>\u00ae that\u00a0gives a perfect\u00a0brightness effect during the night phases of the race\u00a0or during low light conditions that often occur during the race. The\u00a0very thin central seconds hand with a red colored tip is extremely\u00a0beautiful and it is a tribute to racing chronometers.<\/p>\n

Five colors for five countries<\/h2>\n

The Mille Miglia<\/strong> race has always been a race for nations since its\u00a0very beginning. Although the current timepiece is a historical\u00a0re-enactment of the original watch, the spirit is still intact to\u00a0coincide with this commemorative re-edition \u2013 blue, red, yellow,\u00a0green, silver all\u00a0remind us of those cars and nations that took part\u00a0in the Mille Miglia<\/strong> race between 1927<\/strong> and 1940<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

\"Mille-Miglia-2017-chopard\"Racing Red<\/strong> for Italy<\/strong>,\u00a0British Racing Green<\/strong> for England<\/strong>, Speed Silver<\/strong> for Germany<\/strong>, Yellow<\/strong> for\u00a0Belgium<\/strong> and, finally, Blue<\/strong> for\u00a0Bugatti<\/strong> and Talbot<\/strong>. There\u00a0are 300 copies<\/strong> of each of the versions, each one comes with the red\u00a0Mille Miglia logo<\/strong> printed on the dial and on the see-through\u00a0case-back.<\/p>\n

\"Chopard-Mille-Miglia-Classic-Chronograph-Racing-Colours-Edition-5\"The timepieces\u00a0are not equipped with an in-house built\u00a0caliber, but rather with a classic 4Hz<\/strong> and 42<\/strong>\u2013hour<\/strong>\u2013power<\/strong> reserve\u00a0caliber<\/strong> that Chopard<\/strong> COSC<\/strong> certified. It does not really matter that\u00a0the caliber is not in-house built, because the brand\u2019s goal is to\u00a0create a commemorative collection for\u00a0enthusiasts of classic races\u00a0that reminds them of\u00a0the original collections of the Chopard Mille\u00a0Miglia <\/strong>watches.<\/p>\n

\"Chopard-Mille-Miglia-Classic-Chronograph-Racing-Colours-Edition-8\"The tire-weave pattern is now available on the\u00a0inner side of the Rally leather strap following a fashion trend\u00a0that shows a classic style on the outside, while still maintaining the\u00a0comfort of the rubber material around the wrist \u2013 a must have feature\u00a0if you want to wear this timepiece in the summer time too.<\/p>\n

Which one would you choose?<\/h2>\n

As an Italian, I would say that the Chopard Mille Miglia Classic\u00a0Chronograph Racing Colours\u00a0 Edition Rosso Corsa<\/strong> \u2013 as it is clearly\u00a0stated on the case-back \u2013\u00a0 would be the right choice, but it is not so, because, when it comes to watch-making,\u00a0 preferences follow a\u00a0different logic,\u00a0and I think that the Vintage Blue<\/strong> version or even the\u00a0British Green<\/strong> version are possibly the best ones (some additional\u00a0points go to the\u00a0latter one for its understatement \u2013 a factor that\u00a0will pay back with the passing of time).<\/p>\n

\"Chopard-Mille-Miglia-Classic-Chronograph-Racing-Colours-Edition-1\"The retail price? Each of the\u00a0300 specimens<\/strong>, for each color, will retail at USD 6,080<\/strong> \u2013 less than\u00a0EUR 6,000<\/strong> at today\u2019s exchange rate, but we are still waiting for the\u00a0European retail price to be confirmed.<\/p>\n