Style / World of Watches (WOW)

Frederique Constant Healey GMT 24H: Vintage Motoring

Partnerships between watch brands and their counterparts in the automobile industry are common, with most showing a penchant for high-octane motorsports. Frederique Constant has, however, given this a miss and opted for a vintage slant by pairing up with British sports car maker Austin-Healey. Frederique Constant has paid tribute to various cars from this brand […]

Jul 16, 2014 | By Staff Writer

Partnerships between watch brands and their counterparts in the automobile industry are common, with most showing a penchant for high-octane motorsports. Frederique Constant has, however, given this a miss and opted for a vintage slant by pairing up with British sports car maker Austin-Healey. Frederique Constant has paid tribute to various cars from this brand in the past, and the latest is the iconic Austin-Healey NOJ393. Dubbed “the world’s most valuable Austin-Healey”, the NOJ393 changed hands for close to S$1.8 million at a 2011 Bonhams auction in its unrestored form, after a 42-year ownership under an individual.

Frederique Constant Healey Gmt 24h 2

Frederique Constant’s nod to the NOJ393 takes the form of the Healey GMT 24H Collection, which comes in three different materials and colours. Each watch is powered by an FC-350 Automatic GMT movement featuring a date and GMT complication in addition to basic timekeeping functions. We are pleased to report that despite these additional complications, all adjustments to the watch are made via a single crown, thus maintaining the simplicity of the case.

Frederique Constant Healey Gmt 24h 4

Given the NOJ393’s status as a race car from the 1950s, Frederique Constant’s design choices with the Healey GMT 24H were kept sporty yet classic. The understated round case clocks in at 42mm – a good middle-ground for today’s market. Beneath the sapphire crystal lies a dial with guilloche decoration in the middle, surrounded by the hour/minute markers with hand applied indices, which is itself rimmed by the GMT chapter ring. A simple date aperture sits at three o’clock, with Frederique Constant’s signature and the Healey logo balancing each other at 12 and six o’clock respectively.

Frederique Constant Healey Gmt 24h 3

The watch comes in either rose gold with a silver or chocolate dial, or in stainless steel with a silver dial. Each model is limited to 2,888 pieces, and comes in a specially designed gift box accompanied by a model of the Austin-Healey NOJ393. 


 
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