The latest model to join Reservoir’s award-winning Kanister collection, the 316 brings a new and modern look to this vintage line. Inspired by the legendary Porsche 356 Speedster, this is a Franco-Swiss timepiece for petrolheads, nostalgia lovers and watch fanatics alike.
If you close your eyes, you can almost be there. The gentle click of the door closing, top open and breeze still whistling around your ears. The soft leather seat beneath you. The pleasing smoothness and thinness of the classic wood steering wheel as your hands close around it. And, finally, the throaty noise and vibration of the revs, as you turn the engine over and punch the accelerator. It’s enough to make your pulse race. But if you were to open your eyes, what would they land upon? Of course, it would be the quivering needle of the RPM counter, rising and falling hypnotically in tandem with the pedal as the revs roar through the engine and into your heart.
“In addition, the very high standards attached to the Swiss Made designation constitute essential elements of reassurance for a large number of international collectors”
The 356 Speedster captured the imagination of a generation of gearheads from the very moment it was launched in 1954. Peaking in popularity in 1957 with the 356 A 1500 GS Carrera GT Speedster – the first production Porsche to reach over 200 kilometres per hour – it was helped along in its popularity by ultra-fan and 1955-model owner James Dean and became an icon of cool, with all aspects of its design working in harmony. From the gentle curves of the bodywork and the distinctive steering wheel, right down to the ultra-legible RPM counter on the dash, it’s no wonder that this work of automotive art’s appeal has been so enduring. And it’s this iconic dial that served as the inspiration for Reservoir’s Kanister collection of timepieces. With its unique combination of jumping hours at six o’clock on an inner circle, retrograde minutes mimicking the motion of the RPM counter’s needle and retro-cool power reserve indicator anchoring the whole dial, this arrestingly automotive look won a prestigious Red Dot award in 2022, proving its design creds.
So what’s under the bonnet of this sporty little number?
The entire Kanister collection is powered by the calibre RSV-240, a proprietary three-complication module that’s coupled with a manufacture movement, the LJP-G100 by Swiss motor manufacturer Télôs Watch S.A. Since Reservoir’s creation in France in 2017, all the brand’s timepieces have been equipped with Télôs modules, and this Franc-Swiss partnership moved one step further in 2022 with the launch of Kanister and its specially-tailored calibre.
“For the design and manufacture of its watches, Reservoir has opted for a Swiss Made approach for the following reasons: there is unique watchmaking know-how in Switzerland that is unequalled in any other country in the development of complications, with the presence of many very specialized watch designers renowned for their innovative character,” says François Moreau, founder and CEO of Reservoir. “In addition, the very high standards attached to the Swiss Made designation constitute essential elements of reassurance for a large number of international collectors.
“The collaboration between Télôs and Reservoir has made it possible to develop and then manufacture a fine watchmaking module comprising three complications: jumping hour, retrograde minute and 56-hour power reserve. These three complications have been designed specifically for the Reservoir brand and have benefited from numerous innovations in the way they have been designed, in particular on the necklace or on the various so-called ‘release’ safety devices. Its unique characteristics allow Reservoir to hold a patent on this module today.”
Developing their movements in La Chaux-de-Fonds and assembling them in Neuchâtel, the watchmaking providence of Télôs is impeccable. And, when combined with the distinctively inviting design of Reservoir’s Kanister collection, the partnership is undeniably one that works – just like the combination of modernity and vintage chic of the collection itself.
Getting behind the wheel of a Speedster was the ultimate expression of freedom in the late 1950s – often thought of as a decade of tightly-laced baby boomers and steadfast tradition, it was also the beginning of teenagers, rock ‘n’ roll and youthful, rebellious spirit. Carrying a remnant of that defiant era on one’s wrist is a beautiful expression of all that was pure and good about it. The wind in your hair, leaving all your cares behind you – nothing between you and the horizon but a few jumps of the needle on the rev-counter. Get your motor runnin’.
