What We Know
It’s been a while since we’ve heard from Autodromo. The motorsports-inspired boutique brand is a longtime favorite of many here at Hodinkee. Heck, we did a pretty cool LE with them back in 2023, featuring a special-edition series of Group B Chronographs. That same year, the brand unveiled its Group C, a watch that captured the spirit of digital ’80s watches rather nicely.
Today, Autodromo is launching its first totally new model since then. Meet the Autodromo Group C Turbo Sport, a fresh take on the practical analog-digital (ana-digi) watches like the Tissot Two Timer, the Heuer Manhattan Chronosplit GMT, and, of course, Breitling’s Aerospace and Pluton that once adorned wrists behind the wheel and at the track a couple of decades back.
The case is 38.5 millimeters in diameter and made from anodized aluminum – that’s the alloy that your BMX bike parts used to be made from back in the day – or at least mine were. The new Group C Turbo comes in three anodized aluminum flavors, clear, grey, and gold. Each has a stainless steel caseback and features a grid dial that’s meant to evoke the tachymeter instruments of the Group C Turbo racing era that ran from the early 1980s until about 1993, and was defined by European endurance events including the 24 hours of Le Mans. The Group C cars of the era that inspired these watches featured clean lines, ground effects that delivered high downforce, and turbochargers, offering outsized horsepower that demanded physical stamina to last over a lengthy endurance event.
The analog instrument elements of the Group C Turbo feature brightly colored and lume-filled syringe hands pointing to the offsetting, color-contrasting hash marks of the quartz-timed minute track. The indexes reach the 4 o’clock and 8 o’clock positions. It’s there that the practical digital screen is positioned below the retro scripted ‘TURBOSPORTCHRONO” lettering.
The digital display window adds practicality and function by the bucketful. With dual time zones (giving the watch three time-zone telling ability in total), an alarm function, and a chronograph with timing to 1/100th of a second. There’s also a handy backlight. Both case sides feature two buttons for setting the purposes of the analog and digital displays. The bottom right button on each model features a different color, ranging from anodized red on the grey model to blue on the gold and clear models.
It’s notable that this isn’t a dedicated ana-digi movement, as there are actually two movements inside powering the watch. A quartz Miyota caliber handles the analog display, while an additional module handles the digital duties, and each takes a separate battery. The Autodromo Group C Turbo comes on FKM rubber straps inlaid with nylon and is priced at $450 a piece.
What We Think
It’s great to see a new watch from Autodromo, and analog-digital is an underserved but worthy category for a comeback. These are ana-digi good times. Aluminum is an underused case material, and the Group C Turbo watches are a relatively light 58 grams compared to about 72 grams for the Group C digital.
With 50 meters of water resistance and a practical dual analog digital display that gives you three time zones, you could put one of these on the wrist in June and forget about it until September, and it would take you through all your travels, driving, and most aquatic adventures without a second thought.
Priced at under $500, it’s a worthy way to recall an era on the track when Porsche and Mercedes were challenged by the likes of Lancia, Peugeot, Nissan, Jaguar, and Mazda at Le Mans. Anodized aluminum is a clever choice of material for the rounded and minimal case to underscore the period. A practical, fairly priced, and lighthearted return from the brand. The gold model is the move here for me, edging out the clear case as the winner only because it lacks lume on the indexes. Welcome back, Autodromo, and thanks for keeping the ana-digi goodness going.
The Basics
Brand: Autodromo
Model: Group C Turbo Sport
Diameter: 38.4mm
Thickness: 11.4mm
Case Material: Anodized aluminum
Dial Color: Black or silver
Indexes: Applied
Lume: Hands (and markers on two models), backlight for the digital screen
Water Resistance: 50 meters
Strap/Bracelet: FKM rubber strap
The Movement
Caliber: Quartz Miyota for analog and a separate module for digital display
Functions: Analog time, 2 digital time zones, 1/100 sec chronograph measure, daily alarm, backlight for the screen.
Pricing & Availability
Price: $450
Limited Edition: No
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