Jacob & Co. and Bugatti have once again joined forces to bring forth an extraordinary timepiece, the counterpart to Bugatti’s new hyper sports car by the same name, Tourbillon. Seamlessly integrating aesthetics, mechanics and functionality, the Jacob & Co. Bugatti Tourbillon creates a never-before-seen resemblance between a timepiece and automobile
This remarkable timepiece features a V16 engine block automaton, a 30-second flying tourbillon, and a twin power reserve. With retrograde hours and minutes that start at zero to mimic an RPM counter, this design is first-of-its-kind in the world of horology. Bugatti also drew inspiration from watchmaking when designing their new hyper sports car, showcasing its technical details and precision craftsmanship akin to the intricate visibility of a high-quality watch’s movement, emphasising exclusivity and complexity, hence the name of the car: Tourbillon.
The 52 x 44 mm watch case mirrors the car’s body with design elements like the front grille, side radiator inlets and large sapphire side openings reflecting the car’s iconic features. Replicating Bugatti’s iconic engine architecture, the timepiece showcases a visible engine block, 16 pistons and a 30-second tourbillon – the fastest ever made by the Jacob & Co. With ten distinctive design elements derived from the car, the timepiece reinterprets the extraordinary design brought to life by Bugatti.
In September 2022, Bugatti privately announced to Jacob & Co., who is a leading licensee partner, the development of a new hyper sports car to succeed Chiron, featuring a new engine, design and unprecedented levels of engineering and luxury. By January 2023, Jacob & Co. visited Bugatti’s design studio where founder Jacob Arabo, CEO Benjamin Arabov, and their team collaborated with Bugatti’s design team, led by Achim Anscheidt and Jan Schmid. Together, the meeting resulted in a seamless integration of car and watch design, culminating in the Bugatti Tourbillon, an extraordinary timepiece created and developed over 18 months, showcasing the innovative synergy between two of the world’s most luxurious brands.
The Caliber JCAM55 has the same architecture as the car’s engine: its engine block is visible through an opening behind the wheel. The upper crystal offers a panoramic view on the engine block, its sapphire construction, its 16 pistons and the underlying crankshaft. Under the case, a sapphire crystal creates a through and through transparency effect. The 30-second tourbillon regulating the movement is the fastest Jacob & Co. ever made.
The dashboard of the Bugatti Tourbillon is designed like the one in Bugatti’s hyper sports car. On the left side, it showcases the 30-second flying tourbillon. On the right side, a sub-dial indicates both the movement’s and the engine’s (i.e. the V16 engine block automaton) power reserve. In the centre, the hour and minute sub-dial is a near replica of the RPM and speed counter. All three subdials are covered by a single sapphire crystal, with a unique shape.
A unique feature in contemporary watchmaking, the Bugatti Tourbillon displays the power reserve of its automaton. The engine block automaton can execute an incredible 10 consecutive animation sequences on a single, full wind. The remaining autonomy is indicated by the smaller hand in the Power Reserve counter.
Caliber JCAM55’s overall power reserve of 48 hours is indicated by the larger, red hand in the same subdial. They share the same centre. In just as rare a configuration, both parts of the movement are wound by the same crown. Shaped like a control knob from the car’s dashboard, it works in both directions. Time setting is operated by a flip-out bow on the caseback.
In the centre of the dashboard, the hour and minute counter feature the retrograde jumping hour and minute hands, with the legendary Bugatti logo in between. After they complete a 270-degree arc, they jump back to zero – with the hour scale starting at zero like an rpm counter – and start anew.
Jacob & Co. has crafted a new miniature engine block. The V16 engine is made of an extremely large single block of transparent sapphire, known to be costly and difficult to design with, in which 16 cylinders are drilled and used to house many pistons, crafted out of titanium. They’re driven by an incredible achievement of watch manufacturing: a single-axis crankshaft.
It is one of the longest, most elaborate and most delicate watch parts ever crafted. Mimicking the Internal Combustion Engine, it has to be perfectly straight, light, and arranged so that the cylinders can fire with the appropriate sequence. When the automaton is activated, the crankshaft spins and all 16 cylinders move up and down.
Pushing the resemblance with Bugatti’s full-size engine, it has its own set of exhaust manifolds. Gathered by groups of 4 cylinders, polished or gold-finished steel piping is connected to the engine. After the pusher within the crown is activated, the V16 engine block automaton sequence lasts 20 seconds.
The Jacob & Co. Bugatti Tourbillon is limited to a total of 250 units, the same as the namesake automobile. The first, black DLC titanium version being limited to 150 pieces, leaves ample room for Jacob & Co. to apply its mastery of coloured and precious materials as well as high jewellery to the Bugatti Tourbillon.
