Audi Sport Limited Edition II
Baselworld 2015: Oris Audi Sport Limited Edition II
Oris is introducing the Audi Sport Limited Edition-II to seal its second year of partnership with Audi Sport. The new edition of this model celebrates the partnership between both brands and is limited to 2,000 pieces.
By Emmanuel Adler
Over the last 111 years, Oris has been one of those behind-the-scenes brands that conscientiously and relentlessly contribute to excellent and high-quality Swiss watch production. Paul Cattin and Georges Christian, two watchmakers from Le Locle, founded the brand in 1904. After its creation, the brand acquired the factory of Löhner & Co in a small valley in Basel-Landschaft, far from the other actors of the watchmaking world. Oris was named after a small neighboring stream, which added a touch of poetry to the décor.
The brand has survived all eras including the 1970s watchmaking crisis and a management buy-out in 1982. Oris has never ceased to reinvent itself while keeping in mind its purpose and key to success: the production of quality watches, which are also affordable.
This philosophy is very well summarized in the brand’s all-time striking slogan “Real watches for real people!”.
Partnerships that blend passion and technique
The name “Oris” is linked to activities as diverse as Jazz, scuba-diving, aviation and other mechanical sports. These universes share common denominators: first of all, a general passion that they all find naturally in music. Secondly, a control of technical excellence which is precisely what enables Oris timepieces to conquer seas, the air and even the corners of automobile racing circuits.
The Challenger path
Oris expressed its interest in mechanical sports patent with the release of the Chronoris in 1970. More recently, it became more active in the field after signing a partnership with the F1 Williams team in 2003. Later, in 2014, Oris signed a three-year contract with Audi Sport and now has the opportunity to accompany Audi’s impressive success in the extremely demanding world of top-level endurance racing.
At first, Audi’s two leading Germanic rivals saw the brand as a challenger and it has since then proved its excellence on several occasions. For example, it has won the prestigious “24 Heures du Mans” eleven times since 2000. With this partnership, Oris can undoubtedly forge itself a similar image to that of Audi’s. It will also be able to pave itself a similar path to that of the automotive brand by illustrating the extent of its-know-how in a world where leading brands are everywhere.
As mentioned above, the brand is introducing a new range called Audi Sport Limited Edition-II to seal the second year of this partnership. Some of the main changes in this range include the use of the caliber Oris 778 (as a replacement for the 774 that was used in the first range). There is also enhanced aesthetics thanks to ultra-light titanium and black DLC coating, black Superluminova for the numerals and black ceramic insert on the turning bezel. The red hands of the second-counter and the auxiliary dial complete the sporty, almost discreet, look of the model that all Audi drivers will wear at the 2015 FIA-WEC. Among them, by the way, is Swiss Marcel Fässler.
Technical sheet
- Caliber Oris 778, chronograph, self-winding.
- Date and day at 3 o’clock.
- Multi-piece 44-mm titanium case, screwed crown, stainless steel pushers, all coated with black DLC.
- Ceramic bidirectional bezel with rubber anti-skid inserts.
- Anti-reflective domed sapphire glass.
- Black Superluminova.
- Hour and minute hand in polished black nickel.
- Red central second-hand and aperture.
- Second retrograde counter at 9 o’clock.
- Black perforated leather racing strap in black DLC-coated titanium.
Available to buy: June 2015 at retail price of CHF 3,900.
