Bovet battista tourbillon lifestyle

Bovet and Automobili Pininfarina make a tourbillon twin for record breaking electric Battista supercar

Automobili Pininfarina directly contributed to the design and architecture of the Battista Tourbillon, which is powered by a brand new in house movement with a remarkable 10-day power reserve.

In a country that brings us Lamborghinis, Ferraris and Bugattis, it is a bold claim from Automobili Pininfarina that its $2 million Battista electric supercar is the most powerful road-legal car ever to have come out of Italy.

I will leave it to more expert car journalists than I to put that claim to the test, but the statistics are certainly mind-boggling.

The Battista is faster than a current Formula 1 race car with zero to 100 km/h acceleration in under two seconds, and not a whiff of CO2 emitted from its four electric motors that generate 1,900 horsepower, almost double a Bugatti Veyron.

Remarkably, the supercar is even practical, with a range of 310 miles on a single charge.

Less surprising, with Automobili Pininfarina behind the Battista GT, the car is drop-dead gorgeous, as WATCHPRO’s Rob Corder discovered at a presentation by Bovet of the car alongside Geneva Watch Days in August.

Bovet battista rob corder
WATCHPRO’s Rob Corder in the Battista EV, the most powerful road-legal car to ever come out of Italy.

Bovet was launching the Battista Tourbillon timepiece alongside the car, which we can finally speak about today.

The partnership is a marriage made in heaven, according to Bovet owner Pascal Raffy. “At Bovet 1822, the human element is essential, and so it is for Pininfarina,” he says. “Cars and timepieces share the same values: design and performance. When you start a project and there is no interest other than the pursuit of perfection, passions do not just add up – they multiply.”

Automobili Pininfarina directly contributed to the design and architecture of the Battista Tourbillon, which is powered by a brand new in house movement with a remarkable 10-day power reserve.

Bovet battista tourbillon soldier face

The Battista Tourbillon is an expression of the shared design values between Bovet and Automobili Pininfarina and incorporates many of the Battista’s most recognizable features in the watch’s hands, bridges, dials, and other structures that connect the design of Battista to that of the timepiece. For example, the flying bridge above the two main dials of the timepiece reflects the curves of the Battista.

Bovet battista tourbillon back

The Battista’s dashboard has what it calls an E-Heart indicating the state of the car’s electrical charging. Bovet picks up this detail in the shape of its big date on the dial while on the back it has guided the design of the watch’s winding mechanism.

Two-tone asymmetrical blue dials on the face, shaded from light to dark blue, feature Battista’s Triangolo pattern and together form the shape of the number 90, a reference to the Battista Anniversario and Pininfarina’s 90-year heritage.

Bovet battista tourbillon dials and 90

On the power-reserve dial on the left, the famous Pininfarina collaborative flags icon can be found, with the “F” for Pininfarina on the left and the Lotus Flower for BOVET on the right, where on the right dial the big date complication takes pride of place.

Bovet battista tourbillon eheart and winding system

“The Battista Tourbillon truly represents the Automobili Pininfarina design philosophy in small scale,” explains Luca Borgogno, chief design officer, Automobili Pininfarina. “By pushing the boundaries, we reached a level of detail and design quality that has not been seen before. It makes a perfect match with the Battista itself.”

Minute attention to design is matched in the engineering of the Battista Tourbillon, which has a new movement delivering 10 day power reserve from a single barrel.

A patented two-sided flying tourbillon is attached at the center of its axis, and the weight distribution of the escapement and balance-spring — all made in house —reduces the lever-arm effect and friction.

Bovet only makes around 1,000 watches per year, and there will only be 30 each of the Battista Tourbillon in titanium, red gold or platinum 45.6mm cases.

Prices start from CHF 285,000 for the titanium watch.

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