IWC Porsche Design Watches

IWC Porsche Design 

To understand the IWC Porsche Design collection of watches, it helps to understand what happened to the watchmaking industry in the 1970s. This period of time is referred to as the “Quartz Crisis” because the invention and popularization of quartz watches during that decade led to a dramatic downturn in the field of traditional mechanical watchmaking. Very quickly, quartz watches became the preferred type of watch for consumers around the world. They were cheaper, more accurate and more precise than their mechanical counterparts. Swiss manufactures, such as IWC, faced huge challenges during this time and needed to adapt. IWC chose to focus on updating its design language in an effort to appeal to a younger and more future-focused customer base. They did this by establishing a partnership in 1978 with Ferdinand Alexander Porsche and Porsche Design. Ferdinand Alexander Porsche was the grandson of Ferdinand Porsche, the founder of the famous German car manufacture. The partnership between IWC and Porsche Design was very successful, leading to a lengthy period of collaboration with many incredible watches introduced.

The Kompassuhr: An Iconic Watch with a Compass

In 1980, the first watch from the IWC Porsche Design collection was introduced, the Kompassuhr (IW3510). The IWC Porsche Design Kompassuhr is a watch and a compass, all in one smartly designed package. When the wearer pushes the button on the bottom lugs, the top of the case swings up to reveal a hidden compass. Integrating a compass into a mechanical watch is not an easy task. A compass is reliant on the Earth’s magnetic fields, and any other magnetic fields in close vicinity could create problems. This meant that IWC needed to ensure that the case, bracelet and any parts of the movement that could become magnetized were made out of antimagnetic materials. They chose to manufacture the case and bracelet from aluminum and coated them with a PVD process. And inside the movement of the watch, the standard bearings used in the automatic winding rotor were swapped out. In 1980, the manufacturing process for incorporating aluminum into a watch was not well known, and the Kompassuhr was viewed as extremely modern. The Kompassuhr was a success for IWC and Porsche Design, and was the start of a partnership that was very successful over the years to come.

New Versions of the Kompassuhr

The original IWC Porsche Design Kompassuhr proved to be so popular that the manufacture chose to create new and improved versions of the useful watch. In 1991, a new Kompassuhr (3511) was introduced, featuring an exotic titanium case. In 1985, a version of the Kompassuhr (3551) with a moon phase indication was introduced. A moon phase indication displays the current phase of the moon, also known as its synoptic period. It does this by rotating a disc with an image of the moon printed on it underneath the dial, at a rate of one rotation every 29.5 days (the time of one complete synoptic period of the moon). The dial uses a small cutout window to display the moon in its current phase. While a moon phase indication may not be the most useful complication for the average watch wearer today, this historic and romantic complication illustrates our connection to the stars.

IWC Porsche Design Titan Chronograph

In 1980, the IWC Porsche Design Titan Chronograph (3702) was released, which was the first wristwatch chronograph made with titanium in the world. An early advertisement for the watch said, “Titanium. An exotic metal. Twice as difficult to craft as stainless steel. Eight times more expensive. But half the weight. Absolutely non-corrosive. Non-magnetic. Incredibly durable. Thus obviously superior. One of many design decisions typical of the world’s first titanium chronograph.” While this advertising language is somewhat exaggerated, IWC was essentially telling the truth. Watch manufactures knew of titanium, but there was a reason it wasn’t used often. Before the quartz crisis, watches in gold, platinum and steel were selling very well. There was simply no reason to go through the trouble of developing a manufacturing process for titanium. The quartz crisis changed all that. IWC and Porsche Design knew that if they were going to convince a new generation of watch consumers to consider their watches, they would need to be very modern in design. The IWC Porsche Design Titan Chronograph reached that goal. Today, in part because of the innovation from IWC and Porsche Design, titanium is commonly used in watchmaking and widely appreciated by watch consumers.

IWC Porsche Design Pricing and Availability

The watches in the IWC Porsche Design collection are highly desirable. High-quality examples of the IWC Porsche Design Titan Chronograph sell for about $3,000. The first watch from the IWC and Porsche Design partnership, the Kompassuhr (introduced in 1989), sells for about $5,000.