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Bert E. Casal
August 28, 2016     |    

Performance And Reliability

Chopard celebrates Porsche Motorsports’s victory at Le Mans.

The 24 Hours of Le Mans is the most prestigious endurance automobile race in the world. It has been held annually since 1923 and has been called the “Grand Prix of Endurance and Efficiency.” It is run on both closed public roads and a racing circuit near the town of Le Mans, France. It is a race wherein speed and sustainability are great factors in completing the race.

Porsche has been the most successful automobile manufacturer at Le Mans, winning a total of 18 victories, including this year’s competition. And this year’s race definitely proved to be one that will be talked about for years to come.

This 84th series of the 24 Hours of Le Mans was held from June 15 to 19, 2016 at the Circuit de la Sarthe, Le Mans, France. Traditionally, the cars are lined up along the length of the pits as the drivers are positioned on the opposite side of the road. When the French flag dropped, drivers race across to their cars, climb on unassisted, then drive off.

This method of starting inspired Porsche to relocate the ignition switch to the left side of the steering wheel (on a left-hand drive car). This allows the driver to use his right hand to put the transmission into gear. This allowed the drivers to shave off a few tenths of a second, which could spell the difference in position at the start of the race. In 1970, the start of the race was changed due to safety reasons. For that year, drivers were already seated inside their cars with their engines turned off. As the starting flag drops, drivers would start their engines then roll off. The following year, the starting method was changed once more, to a rolling start. That method is what is used to this day.

At the 24 Hours of Le Mans 2016, the rolling start was riddled with rain. Once the rain had stopped and the track sufficiently dried, the field of racecars was released. Toyota, Audi, and Porsche fought for the lead in the early stages of the race. After laps of racing, the No. 6 Toyota established a solid lead, followed by the No. 5 Toyota and the No. 2 Porsche. As the race raged on, the No. 6 Toyota experienced some problems and had to relinquish its lead to the No. 5 Toyota, with the No. 2 Porsche not that far behind in second place.

The No. 5 Toyota held its lead all throughout the race. On the last lap of the most prestigious endurance race in motorsports, the No. 5 Toyota experienced mechanical problems, causing him to come to a full stop on the final lap of the race. The No. 2 Porsche, who was only one minute behind the Toyota, was able to pass the leader and cross the finish line to take the top podium. The other Toyota car came in second and Audi finished in third place.

The 2016 edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans had a very dramatic ending. Prior to the No. 5 Toyota’s breakdown, everyone was sure that they would come in first with Porsche in second. But due to unfortunate events, Porsche was able to garner the checkered flag and bag their 18th win at Le Mans. Tragic. Brutal. Surreal. These are words that people have come to describe the outcome of the race. One said that he wouldn’t even wish this on his worst enemy. But that is what this race is all about: being able to speed through the circuit as fast as possible, for the longest time possible – in this case, to survive 24 hours of hard driving.

But despite their loss, congratulations are given to the Toyota team for their hard-fought race. Porsche’s LMP1 Vice President Fritz Enzinger said: “First of all, I would like to express my respect for the sensational performance which Toyota gave in this race.”

“As a Porsche enthusiast, I am totally thrilled about this final unexpected victory. We are proud to contribute to pilot’s performance.” – Mr. Karl-Friedrich Scheufele, Co-President of Chopard

Driving the innovative Porsche 919 Hybrid were Romain Duma, Neel Jani, and Marc Lieb. The other Porsche car, piloted by Mark Webber, Timo Bernhard, and Brendon Hartley, crossed the finish line in 14th place after their car suffered a water pump problem. In the history of Le Mans, no other car manufacturer has won the world’s toughest endurance race so many times as Porsche has. And, as the Official Timing Partner of the team, Chopard is extremely proud to be a partner of Porsche Motorsport.

For the third year in a row, Chopard has been the Official Timing Partner of the team. Perfectly in line with the spirit of the Superfast watch collection, this prestigious partnership is an extension of Chopard’s longstanding commitment to automotive sports. In 2014, Chopard became the Official Timing Partner of the German racing team’s grand comeback to endurance competition. That same year, in honor of the exclusive partnership, Chopard launched a Superfast chronograph inspired by the Porsche 919 Hybrid competing in the World Endurance Championship LMP1 category. This year, Chopard unveiled a new watch, the Superfast Chrono Porsche 919 Black Edition, a 100-piece limited series whose design is inspired by the sportscar.

The Superfast Chrono Porsche 919 Black Edition is imposing in its 45 mm titanium case size. This material is very much favored in the world of racing for its strength and its lightweight properties. The titanium case is bead-blasted, blackened by a DLC (diamond-like carbon) treatment, ensuring an extremely scratch-resistant coating.

The bezel bears a lacquered titanium tachymetric scale and secured by eight PVD-coated blackened screws. The matte black rubber-molded screw lock crown bears a steering wheel emblem, while the pushers are respectively coated in red rubber at 2 o’clock (the chronograph start-stop functions) and black rubber at 4 o’clock (zero-reset function). The design of the grooves on the case middle reminds us of the cooling fins of racecar engines, an exclusive finish reflected in the straight lines of the dial is reminiscent of the Porsche 919 Hybrid’s rear diffuser. The red 919 logo that appears on the hours counter is identical to the numbers of the Porsche Hybrid competition cars.

The colors of the Superfast Chrono Porsche 919 Black Edition contrast between the three colors of the Porsche racecar. Its matte black dial features red counter hands, minutes markers, and central sweep seconds hand, while the Superluminova-painted Arabic numerals, hours, and minute hands, as well as the metallic hour markers, stand out distinctly against the dial.

As racecars are equipped with the finest engines, the Superfast Chrono Porsche 919 Black Edition houses an “engine” built for competition”: the Chopard Calbire 03.05M, entirely produced and assembled in Chopard’s Fleurier Ebauches workshops. This mechanical self-winding chronograph movement delivers a substantial 60-hour power reserve and features a flyback function. This movement achieves remarkable precision, as certified by the Swiss Official Chronometer Testing Institute (COSC). Aside from a view of the cutting-edge mechanism that features silt bridges reminiscent of racing engines, the sapphire crystal case back is engraved with the inscription “Official Timing Partner Porsche Motorsport” and the team logo.

Other technical details of the Superfast Chrono Porsche 919 Black Edition include: Water resistance of 100 meters, glare proof sapphire crystal, 45 jewels, a frequency of 28,800 vph, arrow-tipped central sweep seconds hand, red minutes and hours counter hands, metallic black seconds counter hand, a date window between 4 and 5 o’clock, and a black rubber strap with slick tire tread motif fastened by a DLC-blackened titanium folding clasp.

On the eighteenth victory of Porsche at Le Mans, Co-President of Chopard Mr. Karl-Friedrich Scheufele said: “As a Porsche enthusiast, I am totally thrilled about this final unexpected victory achieved by our outstanding partner team: Porsche Motorsport! We are very proud to contribute to pilot’s performance and run after time using their Superfast watches.”

Chopard is a watch brand known for their precision and reliability since its founding in 1860 by Louis-Ulysse Chopard. Precision, required by Chopard to deliver accurate time; required by Porsche Motorsport to cut through the course as efficiently as possible. Reliability in a watch means knowing that it will serve you well for years to come, whereas in racing, it means that the car will be able to withstand more than 24 continuous hours of break-neck speeds and sharp cornering, yet able to cross the finish line with conviction.

As the recently concluded 24 Hours of Le Mans has etched itself onto the history books, Chopard and Porsche Motorsport are still on the way, ready to accumulate more milestones as they continuously write on their respective annals.

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