Watches

The unusual name was registered by Rolex in 1953. A manometer is, in fact, the name of a scientific instrument used for measuring pressure. Opinions vary as to why Rolex chose the closely related name Monometer, but there’s no doubting the scientific-sounding nature of the watch: this is a timepiece built to a high standard, for professionals.

Carrying the Rolex reference 6202, further confusion arises as this number was also used by the functionally identical ‘Turn-O-Graph’, also released at this time. Within a few years both were superseded by the famous ‘Submariner’.

Which passion came first, cars or watches?

Well, I received my first watch for my Communion when I was about 8 years old and I opened it up immediately to see how it functioned. In fact, all kinds of mechanised toys and machines intrigued me totally. Cars were also on my mind, in the form of my first model car, and motorsport has always been a passion of mine. So it’s six of one and half a dozen of the other.

Probably not, but the boffins at Cartier's haute horlogerie laboratory certainly have. Since 2007, they have been striving to design a watch which reflects the world's current obsession with energy efficiency – and the result is the just-unveiled iD Two concept piece.

As well as incorporating genuine material from the famous 1962 car, owned by Pink Floyd drummer and historic car enthusiast Nick Mason, the watches feature numerous design elements from the GTO – such as the black, natural rubber strap with the cylinder ignition pattern of the Colombo V12 engine. Meanwhile, the full signature of Ingegnere Giotto Bizzarrini adorns the face of each timepiece, of which only 250 examples will be made.

The watches have been devised in collaboration with fashion guru Darren Romanelli, and are based on the Rolex Submariner and Yachtmaster models.

According to the Bamford Watch Department, the collection celebrates both the Army and Navy, with the world’s laziest Private and the mightiest mariner integrated into the fronts of the custom-designed watches, while the back of each one is engraved with the Dr. Romanelli logo and its Special Edition number.

During May's Monaco Grand Prix, however, TAG Heuer pulled the wraps off the latest version of its square-cased Monaco driver's watch to reveal a black dial discreetly decorated with the ACM logo at six o'clock. The watch, which features urgent orange highlights matched by the stitching on the black alligator strap, will be available in an edition of 1,200, priced at £4,500 apiece – and anyone (with the money) can buy it.

Formula 1 drivers usually have an affinity with watches. Why is that?

While today’s re-run of the famous 1000-mile race from Brescia to Rome and back again has its critics, there’s no denying that it’s still some sort of a test of endurance. Chopard boss Karl-Friedrich Scheufele (pictured, top, in an Auto Union) is a passionate classic car enthusiast and regularly runs the Mille Miglia in any one of his fabulous collection of cars.