Patek Philippe

Dje
7785

• Show profile
• Show other posts

Porsche or Patek Philippe, 911 or 96: do we love classics because they are classics?

A few weeks back some here discussed about the parallels between cars and Patek Philippe watches. patek.watchprosite.com

A few weeks even earlier I had looked more for boat builder comparisons. patek.watchprosite.com

 I stick to my words about such parallels between carmakers and watchmakers. I still consider these two businesses to be too different to be directly compared. But as the subjects was opened I wanted to share some thoughts, some very personal thoughts about my comparisons between cars and watches, or between the Porsche 911 and the Patek Philippe Calatrava.

If you are not at ease with the 911 history you may want to ask which Calatrava model I’m speaking about. All of them in fact!

The Calatrava range is definitely not Patek Philippe’s product history in itself, but it is the most iconic range in the Patek Philippe’s history. Such is the 911 for Porsche.

The 356 would be the pocket watch earlier life, fascinating and less practical, but with such a vintage charm! The 914/924/944/968 would represent the quartz pieces, more modern and efficient, but lacking the charm of the “queens” whatever their qualities. The 917 or 962 or other competition cars would embody the extreme segment, the highly complicated pocket watches. The 928 would be the original Nautilus, a luxurious and more efficient evolution, while the Cayenne would be the current one, sportier than average, in casual terms. The Boxer would represent the Aquanaut range, younger and easier to access. The Cayman of the Panamera would be like the annual calendars, practical at their level. If not, who cares, it’s so personal…

The many versions of 911 would perfectly embody the various versions of Calatrava watches, incorporating the complicated ones, up to the perpetual calendars (C4S) and specially the chronograph ones (GT3).  The minute repeaters could be turbo 911s or GT2s or even a Carrera GT for the Sky Moon Tourbillon.

Of course such comparisons are pointless, and many probably already want to give their differing opinions!

What counts more is the essential reason why I want to link Patek Philippe to Porsche. Any idea?

Patek Philippe watches and Porsche cars are in my opinion equally upscale luxury products aimed at being, efficient, utterly lastingly reliable, superiorly built. They offer a real daily experience that can be either extreme if desired so or quite easy to catch up if preferable. Performance is, well, enough! Always!

Finish is another common aspect, directly resulting from the quality objective. Finish is superb but mainly aimed at pleasing the owner, not showing off.

To some extent they fail to impress (others), like some watches from some independents or some more fashionable brands can do. I don’t care. I’m not looking for impressive toys. And you?

What they can do is impress myself (yourself) on the long run IMO. I feel that this kind of impression that is slowly growing in effect if not in intensity is the sign of the great classics.

Look at the 96, the 3796, the 5026 and 5096 and then the 5196! Look at the original 911 from 1963, then the late sixties version, the 3 litre in the seventies, the 3.2, the 964, the 993, the 996, the 997! Do you think that we love them all because they are classics, or do you think that they are classics because we all love them?

I can hardly say which 911 is my favourite and I can’t choose between all the Calatrava iterations. They are all complementing each other. They are all the choice at one time.

One difference between the current 911 and the 5196: I could choose my 911’s detailed own specifications, but I can’t choose to have a central hand on my 5196 (for instance).

This world can’t be perfect!

Cheers

Dje