DWW 2023: The New Girard-Perregaux Neo Bridges Aston Martin Edition Draws Inspiration from the first Super Tourer, DB12

Collaborations between luxury timepiece makers and sports car manufacturers have often resulted in the creation of iconic, limited-edition watches. Essentially, these partnerships aim to combine the precision, craftsmanship, and exclusivity of luxury watches with the design, performance, and prestige of high-end sports cars. These not only result in aesthetically appealing timepieces, but also often feature innovative materials and technologies that are used in both watchmaking and automotive industries. The exclusivity of such collab timepieces attracts collectors and enthusiasts from both watch and automotive worlds. 

One such time-tested collaboration involves Girard-Perregaux and Aston Martin. The famous GP Aston Martin line, born of the partnership, has now been expanded, with the Girard-Perregaux Neo Bridges Aston Martin Edition (Ref. 84000-21-3236-5CX) as the latest addition to the series. It draws inspiration from the exciting GP Neo Bridges and Aston Martin’s first Super Tourer, DB12, featuring subtle changes in appearance to reflect their ongoing partnership at the Dubai Watch Week 2023, currently being held in the emirate.

Launched this year, the new Aston Martin DB12 is created on the same lines as its cousin, the Coupe. The sports car’s foundation is an uncompromised aluminium structure. The new Aston Martin DB12 is powered by a 4.0 ltr Twin-Turbo V8 engine to deliver 671 bhp and 800 Nm of torque between 2750 and 6000 rpm. The exceptional hand-built engine features modified cam profiles, optimised compression ratios, larger turbos, and increased cooling to achieve a rise in output by 34%, compared with the DB11. Accelerating from 0 to 60 mph in 3.6 seconds or from 0 to 62 mph in 3.7 seconds, and powering on to a top speed of 202 mph, the DB12 Volante’s power is fed through a ZF 8-speed automatic transmission, which, like the DB12 Coupe, features a range of shift strategies, complementing each of the dynamic driving modes.

The Girard-Perregaux Neo Bridges Aston Martin Edition is limited to just 250 pieces. It comes in a 45 mm titanium case with black DLC coating. This material can also be found on the lugs and the crown at 3 o’ clock. In fact, the watch has brushed greys, vibrant rubies, brooding blacks, and silver-coloured wheels, lending the watch a fierce look. 

This limited-edition timepiece also comes with an openworked dial,  protected by a box-type, glare-proof sapphire crystal. There are suspended and skeletonised hour markers on an inner black ring with the GP logo taking its position at 12 o’clock, accompanied by a minute track with fluorescent green markings. The movement’s baseplate doubles as the dial with a balance wheel at 6 o’clock. There are skeletonised, baton-type hour and minute hands, sporting a green luminescent material. 

Wearers will also notice that a barrel, effectively the fuel tank of the watch, is positioned at 1:30. It is supported by a black, openworked bridge. Then at 10 o’clock, there is a micro-rotor, adorned with “Aston Martin” gracing the barrel. When designing the barrel and the micro-rotor, the joint creative team drew inspiration from the brakes, revealed behind Aston Martin DB12’s spoked wheels, showcasing sharper lines and extra openings. The sandblasted, PVD-treated bridges in Aston Martin Green contribute to a captivating overall construction.

Powering the watch is the self-winding Calibre GP084000-2164 with 48 hours of power reserve. As the major workings of the watch are visible on the dial, the caseback has a very minimal approach. The Aston Martin logo is placed right at the centre of the caseback with  a smaller bridge crossing the micro-rotor with the engraving of “One of 250” on the outer periphery. This new Girard-Perregaux Neo Bridges Aston Martin Edition is presented on a black rubber strap with a fabric effect and green stitching, paying homage to the carmaker’s signature colour. The ensemble is completed with a matching titanium DLC triple-folding buckle.