Did you know that Breitling and Aston Martin go way back, well before the F1 partnership? In 1965, pieces from the Swiss watchmaker and British car company were altered by Q branch for use by James Bond in Thunderball.
As the world’s most famous fictional spy, played by Sean Connery at the time, sped through the Swiss Alps in pursuit of stolen nuclear warheads, he drove a decked-out Aston Martin DB5 and wore a Breitling Top Time ref. 2002, equipped with a Geriger counter.
Breilting and Aston Martin pay homage to that first encounter, when two design icons of the 1960s were paired up by the film’s production team, with the new Top Time B01 Chronograph Tribute to Aston Martin DB5.
The Top Time Aston Martin DB5 (as I’ll abbreviate the name) combines design elements from the first generation of Breitling’s sporty chronograph, which debuted in 1964, with, thanks to Agent 007, the most iconic Aston Martin ever produced.
Three references are available, one with a silver sunburst dial mimicking the car’s radiant exterior, and two with black dials that follow the dashboard instrument panel. All three have the same black snailed bicompax subdials, baton hands and faceted stick hour markers.
The standout feature that ties the watch and the car together is a wooden internal bezel finished to match the steering wheel of a 1960s DB5. It is marked with a tachymeter scale that reads “Aston Martin DB5” across the first 10 seconds.
