Porsche Design has just reached its 50th anniversary. Porsche Design was founded in 1972 by Ferdinand Alexander Porsche who also created the Porsche 911. To celebrate this joyous milestone, Porsche Design have partnered with Sotheby’s auction house to auction out two iconic designed Porsche’s.
The two models in question are the restored one-off Porsche 911 S 2.4 Targa from 1972 and the Porsche Design Chronograph 1 which is also from the same year. These two Porsches will be auctioned at the Sotheby’s New York Luxury Week 2022 which will be held later this year.
PRESS RELEASE
To mark the brand’s 50th anniversary, Porsche Design is offering two extraordinary design icons for auction in a special partnership with Sotheby’s auction house. An exceptionally restored Porsche 911 S 2.4 Targa, dating from 1972, and a unique timepiece based on the legendary Porsche Design Chronograph I, also dating from the year in which Porsche Design was founded.
The two design classics not only pay homage to the close collaboration between the brands Porsche Design and the sports car manufacturer Porsche, but are also intrinsically linked by their shared heritage with Professor Ferdinand Alexander Porsche, the founder of Porsche Design and designer of the legendary Porsche Targa 911.
Sotheby’s New York Luxury Week 2022
At the end of the year, Sotheby’s will present these exclusive anniversary design icons to chronograph connoisseurs and car enthusiasts around the world as highlights in their bi-annual multi-category Luxury Week series in New York, which showcases the finest examples of products created at the highest intersection of art and luxury. The successful bidder will receive a stylish and exclusive box containing not only the unique timepiece, but also the key to the Porsche 911 S 2.4 Targa.
Following the world premiere of the 1972 Porsche 911 S 2.4 Targa at the start of the anniversary year in January, the unique Porsche Design watch was also recently unveiled at an exclusive event at the Porsche Museum in Stuttgart, Germany.
One of a kind: Chronograph 1 – 911 S 2.4 Targa
This unique piece, the Chronograph 1 – 911 S 2.4 Targa was developed especially for the auction at Sotheby’s on the basis of the Chronograph 1 – 1972 Limited Edition. What makes it so unique is the design of the winding rotor on the back of the case, which corresponds to the historic Fuchsfelge® wheel of the Porsche 911 S 2.4 Targa from 1972.
It was developed by means of elaborate design and testing by the engineers in the brands’ own watch manufacturing facility in Solothurn, Switzerland, and translates the movement of its wearer’s wrist into energy to drive the mechanical chronograph caliber in a rotation-optimized manner. The timepiece also bears reference to the 911 Targa in its name. As a special collector’s item, it not only pays tribute to the past, but celebrates the present and leads the brand forward into the future.
The Porsche 911 S 2.4 Targa: the historic counterpart to the timepiece
The 1972 Porsche 911 S 2.4 Targa also returns in impressive fashion as a stunning one-off classic. The car, which bears the unmistakable design signature of Ferdinand Alexander Porsche, has been restored as part of a unique project by Porsche Classic in close collaboration with Porsche Design. Much of the design input came from Roland Heiler and Studio F. A. Porsche in Zell am See. “Our general philosophy in a factory restoration project is to restore the vehicles to be as faithful to the original as possible,” explains Uwe Makrutzki, Head of Porsche Classic Factory Restoration at Porsche AG.
“We deliberately took a different approach with this project. We’ve created a unique vehicle that blends tradition and present day, and bears the signature of Ferdinand Alexander Porsche.” The vehicle features original historic fabrics such as the black Sport-Tex checkered flag upholstery, and is embossed with ‘50 Years of Porsche Design Edition’ on the side stripes, headrests and dashboard, among other elements – all marking the brand’s milestone year. As a special highlight, the Targa roll bar has the same Platinum Satin finish, offering a new interpretation of the brushed stainless steel of the classic model. A ’50 Years of Porsche Design’ plaque with a facsimile signature of Prof. Ferdinand Alexander Porsche is placed on the grille of the engine cover at the rear.
At the same time, the anniversary model also picks up the color scheme of the legendary Chronograph I designed by Ferdinand Alexander Porsche in 1972, with black dominating both inside and out. The on-board owner’s manual and tool bag were also individualized with the ’50 Years of Porsche Design’ logo. A restoration case with detailed documentation, a key fob and a model car that has also been converted complete the project.
The Chronograph I – back to the roots
When designing the Chronograph I, F. A. Porsche consistently pursued the goal of transferring design principles from the sports car to the wrist, thus giving new expression to precision, functionality, aesthetics, and delivering the authentic Porsche sports car feeling in the form of this special timepiece.
The result was the world’s first all-black wristwatch: with a matte black dial, a red stopwatch second hand, luminescent hour indices and high-quality anti-glare crystal. Each and every detail was designed to ensure optimum readability —an approach that drew inspiration from the anti-glare displays in the cockpit of a sports car. Since then, Porsche Design has repeatedly mastered this transfer of ideas and link between the two worlds ever since.
The comeback of an icon: Chronograph 1 – 1972 Limited Edition
The new edition, which is limited to 500 pieces, has remained true to the original design right down to the smallest detail. For example, the dial, crown, wristband, and case back bear the historic Porsche Design logo. The only changes made were those necessary to bring the iconic timepiece up to current day technological standards, such as the use of titanium and the addition of a new movement and water resistant case. True to the motto “How would Prof. F. A. Porsche have implemented his first groundbreaking product in the year 2022?”, the watch features the WERK 01.140 caliber, a high-performance, modern Porsche Design automatic movement with COSC certification, technically adapted to be “state-of-the-art.” In this way, the first product design by F. A. Porsche is given a convincing comeback in 2022 – on the occasion of the 50th anniversary.
The exclusive anniversary sports car and timepiece, with an estimated value of $275,000 USD – $325,000 USD, will be sold as part of Sotheby’s Luxury Week New York and presented for the first time outside of Europe to all classic car enthusiasts and timepiece collectors at Monterey Car Week 2022.
