MB&F combines the best of its automotive series with the HM8 Mark 2 timepiece
The body is inspired by the Porsche 918 Spyder paired with Zagato’s signature double-bubble roof design
Only the most revered watch connoisseurs would know about a watch brand such as MB&F. The brand is famed for producing the most exuberant timepieces, and for the past decade, the brand has been venturing into the world of automotive-inspired timepieces courtesy of the founder, Maximilian Büsser, and his childhood passion for cars. The brand unveiled its first automotive-inspired watch in 2012, the HM5, featuring design elements from the Lamborghini Miura supercar. And now, over a decade later, the brand ventures again in this niche genre with the launch of the HM8 Mark 2.
The goal behind the HM8 Mark 2 was to accumulate all elements loved by MB&F fans in the automotive series over the last decade and present it in a “more technical, sexier and easier to wear” manner. The original HM8, launched in 2016, was inspired by the unusual design and distinctive roll bars of the Can-Am race cars from the Canadian American Racecar Championship. The HM8 Mark 2 capitalises on that design while introducing additional iconic automotive muses, such as the Porsche 918 Spyder for the body’s shape and the Zagato double bubble for the sapphire crystal.
Unlike the HM8’s monobloc construction, the new MB&F HM8 Mark 2 gets built from an independent water-resistant chassis to which the body panels of the watch are added. The coachbuilt body can be had in two variations – white or British racing green CarbonMacrolon, both featuring a matte finish on top and high polish on the sides. The white gets paired with a green CVD rotor with light green minute markers, while the British Racing Green iteration exhibits a red gold rotor and turquoise minute markers. The former will see a limited production of around 20 pieces yearly, while the latter will be restricted to only 33 pieces.
The Mark 2 marks the world premiere of a crown that operates on a “double de-clutch” system. It works by pushing the crown in and turning it three-quarters of a turn to release it. This has the advantage of gaining space and providing additional security to the system.
The new HM8 Mark 2 also boasts body panels made of a unique CarbonMacrolon composite material developed exclusively for the MB&F and last seen on the HM5. It’s essentially a durable polycarbonate material infused with carbon nanotubes that make the element almost as strong as steel but with one-eighth the weight. This hard material can be coloured, polished, bead-blasted, lacquered, or satin-finished to lend an exotic look to compliment the remaining bits of the exclusive timepiece.
Under the hood, the HM8 Mark 2 gets built on a titanium chassis that’s much harder to mill than steel. The CarbonMacrolon body panels add to the build complexity. Furthermore, the double-curved sapphire on the Mark 2 reached a complexity that made it 30 to 40 times more expensive to manufacture than a dome sapphire.
The HM8 Mark 2’s engine gets powered by a Girard-Perregaux base movement with a 42-hour power reserve featuring automatic winding by a 22K gold automatic winding rotor.
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