by Martin Green
Why do some watch/car collaborations take things to the next level and others don’t take off at all? I believe that the key to answering that question is in the “DNA” of the brands joining forces.
Both brands must be in the same frame of mind and have the same approach to product development. And Roger Dubuis and Lamborghini have that match. The watches that have so far come from this still relatively young collaboration have not only been impressive but also suck you into the world of Lamborghini without a car even being in sight.
It is almost like the watchmakers at Roger Dubuis have infused this watch with motor oil and replaced the ticking of the escapement with the growl of an Italian high-performance engine.
Roger Dubuis Excalibur Huracán Performante
While the previous watches from this partnership were good, they have only gotten better with the new Excalibur Huracán Performante.
Lamborghini Huracán: a red-blooded bull
Among Lamborghini’s automobiles, the Huracán counts as my favorite. This might come as a surprise because it is often considered the “entry-level” car of the brand.
What I like about the Huracán is that unlike some of the car brand’s other “bulls” it has a very predictable temper, and especially at speed it seems to shrink in around you.
A one-off Lamborghini model graced the Roger Dubuis stand at the 2019 SIHH
The Lamborghini Huracán Performante is a very serious performer, and my favorite part is that it doesn’t require turbos to impress. Just a massive 5.2-liter V10 that keeps on going and giving. Thanks to a seven-speed twin-clutch transmission and all-wheel drive it can use its 630 horsepower to take you from 0 to 60 mph in just 2.6 seconds.
It is quite the red-blooded bull. But how do you translate all this power and passion into a watch?
By creating a special movement for it, constructed pretty much the same way a Lamborghini engineer would create cars.
The Roger Dubuis Excalibur Huracán Performante is fitted with automatic Caliber RD60 whose 12-degree inclined balance is an absolute eye-catcher. The rest of the movement is pretty straightforward – for a Roger Dubuis, that is – as it doesn’t offer any additional complications other than the date.
Roger Dubuis Caliber RD60 powers the Excalibur Huracán Performante
Roger Dubuis’ watch achieves synergy between both brands using a symmetrical layout combined with a design that seems to have come straight out of Sant’Agata Bolognese, not Geneva!
Roger Dubuis Excalibur Huracán Performante
Roger Dubuis Excalibur Huracán Performante: the devil is in the details
It is rare that a watch can transcend to such an extent that it embodies the product of a different brand in a completely different industry.
Crown of the Roger Dubuis Excalibur Huracán Performante
Some details are very subtle, like the crown that resembles the bolts used on the rims of the car; others are more prominent, like the hexagon design above the mainspring barrels, which Lamborghini uses to give its cars strength but keep them light, with “strut bars” around them.
The Excalibur Huracán Performante has, by the way, two mainspring barrels, which provide the watch with a power reserve of 60 hours.
View through the display back of the Roger Dubuis Excalibur Huracán Performante
The back of the watch is also a treat, where a rotor shaped like a Lamborghini Huracán Performante rim makes its revolutions in the service of winding the watch. Other brands have used rims as rotor shapes, but Roger Dubuis pushed the envelope, making the watch component look remarkably close to the real thing.
The only pity is that the watch designer felt the need to have the name of the watch printed over it.
Roger Dubuis Excalibur Huracán Performante
Roger Dubuis opted for titanium as the case material: this is a good choice as it adds to the high-tech look and feel while also keeping the weight down, which is always a concern when a watch has a diameter of 45 mm.
As has already become a tradition with the Roger Dubuis’s Lamborghini-styled watches, the strap is made from Pirelli tire rubber, but now it also features an Alcantara inlay like that found on the seats of the Huracán Performante.
Roger Dubuis Excalibur Huracán Performante
It is the finishing touch on a seriously cool watch that has a lot to offer, especially for those who share the brand’s passion for Lamborghini.
For more please visit www.rogerdubuis.com/watches/excalibur/spider/excalibur-huracan-performante.
Quick Facts Roger Dubuis Excalibur Huracán Performante
Case: 45 x 13.3 mm, titanium
Movement: automatic Caliber RD630, 4 Hz/28,800 vph, 12-degree inclined balance wheel, 60-hour power reserve
Functions: hours, minutes, seconds; date
Limitation: 88 pieces, includes a ride inside a Super Trofeo racecar
Price: $52,500
*This story was first published on January 21, 2019.
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I thought it so detailed until I saw the name across the rotor. Now I am out. Good effort,spoiled by paranoia.
(someone might not know which watch they are wearing !)