Automotive collaborations in the watch industry are nothing new, but they are a tricky proposition to get right. There needs to be more than a simple exchange of names, for a watch to work it needs to capture the spirit of the brand or the vibe of a design without being too on the nose. A new watch from Marathon walks this line with aplomb, capturing the spirit of the Jeep brand, while also being on the nose in a slightly cheeky way. Marathon is releasing 41mm GSAR and TSAR references as a nod to the Jeep Rubicon, and SSGPM and SSGPQ references honoring the classic Willys.
While the Willys watches bring a classic field watch design to the table, as you might expect, the Search and Rescue GSAR and TSAR references, each in steel cases, find an interesting dynamic that seems to capture the best of both brands. Right off the bat, yes, these have the Jeep logo emblazoned front and center at the top of the dial, a practice we usually deride as the worst of these types of collaborations, but it feels so at home with the rest of the design that it’s hard not to smile at. Truth be told, I’d prefer them without the Jeep logo at the top, but they’ve gone all in on the concept and it kind of works.
Each of these watches are built in Marathon’s new(ish) 41mm beefy steel case, with the rest of the dimensions falling into “does it really matter?” territory. This is an all out robust tool watch and it wears that on its sleeves. What I love here is how the dial and bezel design come together, with the first 15 minutes rendered in red not within the bezel, as we typically see, but on the dial itself. The tone they’ve chosen is warm, and matches the light brown used on the Arabic hour markers against the matte black dial perfectly.
The result is a look that feels authentic to the inspiration while not compromising on the Marathon part as well. This looks and feels like a natural extension of the collection, and I would very much welcome a similar approach taken sans the Jeep partnership. That said, if these are the types of projects that get Marathon exploring their design language a bit further, then I am here for it.
As mentioned above, this design is brought to both the GSAR and TSAR models, meaning you’ll have the option of an automatic or quartz movement. The movements on offer at the Sellita SW200 automatic, and an ETA high-torque quartz. Pricing is set at $1,200 for the quartz and $1,500 for the automatic, and sales are expected to begin in May. The official release of these watches will happen at Time To Watches next week in Geneva, so keep an eye out for some hands-on looks coming soon. Marathon