Breitling’s automotive racing team welcomes its newest member: the Top Time B01 Ford Thunderbird. It is the fourth model to join the 1960s-inspired Top Time Classic Cars collection. With its prominent tail fin, rock-solid construction, and luxury features, the Ford Thunderbird, first unveiled at the Detroit Auto Show in 1954, made automotive history. The convertible promised fun driving for extended joyrides that fitted the new feeling of freedom that blossomed in that era. Today, the two first generations, “Classic Bird” (1955-1957) and “Square Bird” (1958-1960) are particularly sought after.

The new Breitling Top Time B01 Classic Cars Collection from left to right: Top Time B01 Ford Mustang, Top Time B01 Ford Thunderbird, Top Time B01 Shelby Cobra, Top Time B01 Chevrolet Corvette
The Thunderbirds served as a template for the new addition to the Top Time Classic Car line, which Breitling introduced as a Capsule Collection in 2021. It pays homage to the 1960s Top Time Chronograph, a child of Willy Breitling, and consists of three motorsport chronographs inspired respectively by the Chevrolet Corvette, Ford Mustang, and Shelby Cobra. While the first generation sported colorful dials in red, blue, and green, the Top Time B01 Ford Thunderbird is more subdued with a white, naturally luminescent dial.

The red racing-style leather strap and the color-coordinated chronograph hands, as well as a partial section on the tachymeter scale, a...