For the 100th anniversary of the Le Mans race, longtime partner Richard Mille released a special limited edition timepiece as an homage.

The RM 72-01 LMC comes in one of the company’s signature oversized tonneau-shaped cases, made of high-tech Quartz TPT  — composed of over 600 layers of parallel filaments obtained from separating silica threads — in Le Mans green and white.

Functionally the timepiece offers automatic bidirectional winding and indicates hours, minutes, small seconds, date, and flyback chronograph. There’s also a car-like function indicator that tells you which mode you’re in: W (winding), D (neutral), or H (hand setting).

A patented flyback mechanism, which splits torque across the chronograph’s various counters, makes this limited edition horologically interesting.  “The display and the connection to the minutes and hours are thus disengaged from the chronograph’s seconds wheel. The performance of this chronograph is superlative. Drawing power directly from the barrel to supply the chronograph’s three counters, the enhanced energy is transmitted to the chronograph train by a coupling system consisting of two oscillating pinions mounted on rockers, controlling the start, stop, flyback, and reset functions. The rockers are activated by a 6-column wheel whose construction optimizes the simultaneity of actions and the proper latching of functions, whilst ensuring the longevity of the settings,” according to Richard Mille.

The RM 72-01 LMC is a 150-piece limited edition and carries a retail price of $335,000.

 

Photos by Richard Mille.