Admittedly I don’t know much about racing but I do know that Johansson is a big deal in that world. He’s won twice at the 12 Hours of Sebring and racked up a win at 24 Hours of LeMans too. He also counts Formula 1 his playground. He’s been behind the wheel of cars such as Ferrari, Audi, Porsche, Mercedes, McClaren and Honda.
But the truth is, I figured it doesn’t take much to race a car real fast around a track. I see fat, puffy guys flooring their Ferraris and Aston Martin’s all the time in a pathetic attempt to impress whoever decides to spectate. As I’m wondering if Monster Truck lovers also are Formula 1 aficionados, I see a guy approaching me… this well built man with ruffled dirty blonde hair and a big gap-toothed smile. I figure it’s Johansson because he offers to buy me a beverage. These Swedes have great manners.
After we get our morning treats, we sit down and begin our chat. It’s then I get schooled in the rigors of driving for a living. Apparently, racing cars is a very physical activity and if you’re not in good shape then you’ll be in no shape at all if you try to compete. I won’t go into the gory details of what can happen but you get the idea. Johansson tells me that driving a racecar has to take into account over 3000 variables. That’s a lot more complicated equation than I thought. Although Johansson doesn’t have to stay in tip-top anymore, he says he keeps up his routine for health reasons and he likes it. Personally, I think it’s because he wants to look good in his clothes and get away with murder with a wink and a smile. No matter.
While driving is obviously a passion for Johansson, so are his watches because he’s anxious to show me his wares. He pulls out a box and gets down to business. I’m given a tour of the Mark VIII collection, each with different dial layouts and colors. My eye is drawn to one with a pretty powder blue dial (what can I say, I’m a girl), the Mark VIIIc. Johansson straps it on my wrist and says to give it a whirl. I’m eager to find out what will make Johansson’s watch be the needle in the haystack of choices out there, especially given the $7500 price tag. We bid adieu and I’m off to the watch races.
The watch is large, an imposing 47mm, which is large by any standard. I’m a little worried because I’m a petite woman, and while my wrists aren’t toothpicks, they aren’t in a league with a football linebacker either. No doubt the case is too large for my wrist (the lugs hang over) but it doesn’t stop me from taking it out on my excursions day and night.
The dial abounds with nice details. Johansson’s logo resides at 9:00 o’clock. Inside the marque is a checkered flag, for obvious reasons, and a leaf. Why a leaf? Johansson is known on the track as Little Leaf. He got this nickname because his dad, who was from Leaftown, was called Leaf on the track when he did some club racing. Hence, Johansson’s moniker. Johansson says he doesn’t think some of his racing colleagues even know his real name.
The dial pops with that blue color I mentioned and works as a nice backdrop for the red numbers. In the current style the date, at 3 o’clock, has a cut out where three numbers are visible, the one in the middle being the correct one. While I don’t usually prefer dates in this manner, the symmetry and size works well on the dial, opposite Johansson’s logo, giving the dial a nice balanced look.
Being born from a racecar daddy, you would assume this watch carries the chrono function and you would be right. The top indicator below 12 o’clock counts off 30 minutes while the indicator at 6 o’clock marks off 12 hours. In an homage to the 24 hours of LeMans, the lower indicator also contains an inner ring with the hours13-24, though this is aesthetic rather than a practical. Together the two indicators make an auspicious eight shape.
The Mark VIIIc reads well at all angles. The partially skeletonized hands not only provide a nice look, they also keep the dial open. Lume is generously applied on the tips of all hands, including the chrono for nice low light visibility.
Inside the MarkVIIIc ticks a commonplace ETA 7750 engine, but Johansson pointed out that it’s got high-end finish with perlage and Geneva Stripes. I found the pushers a bit stiff and the crown tough to pull out to the second position to set the time. Small faults really.
Befitting a racecar driver, Johansson takes timing seriously. He doesn’t send his watches off to COSC to be certified. No, that’s too easy of a test, putting it up and down and in different directions on a machine, that’s a cakewalk compared to slinging it round the wrist of a driver whipping around the track. That’s Johansson’s testing arena: where the rubber meets the road and the G-forces slam you back in your seat, the temperature singes your hair and the vibrations rattle your bones. If his watches can stand up to this torment, then they are okay to go with Johansson. Other Grand Prix and Endurance Racing drivers also wear his watch during an actual race weekend to put the watch through the ringer.
The watch is fitted with a nice and comfy silicon-free rubber strap that keeps its composure under high temperatures. You can also opt for a leather strap in a snaky Python or Bony Crocodile with a PVC lining to keep it fresh from those unsightly and smelly stains.
Johansson issues all his watches in a limited edition of 25 pieces to maintain exclusivity in addition to having the number and your name engraved on the back. Each watch comes in a winder box: white for women, matt black for men.
As a teaser Johansson let slip that he’s developing a new movement, which is top secret. I tried to pry it out of him with my feminine wiles but alas I didn’t get anywhere. According to Johansson it’s something completely new and will take the idea of movement design to a new level. I’m looking forward to seeing what he has in store.
Here's the Original Article by Meehna at Watchmaker.com
