ReviewTissot PRS 516 – Inspired by Motorsport

The Tissot PRS 516 Extreme Automatic is a tribute to the original Heritage PR 516 which was launched in the 1960s. The original watch was inspired by racing events and was quite popular among racers and fans of motorsport. It was featured in an award-winning advertising campaign and attracted quite a lot of attention from motorsport enthusiasts as well as watch connoisseurs. The new PRS 516 derives its roots from that legendary timepiece while being driven by the latest technology in Swiss watchmaking.

The Swiss luxury brand has been quite a pioneer in the field of watchmaking. In 1853, the year that it was founded, the company introduced to the world the first mass-produced pocket watch. That same year, the company also launched the first pocket watch that showed two time zones. It was quite a feat for a brand that was still in its first year of operation. In 1929-30, Tissot introduced the world’s first anti-magnetic watch, a timepiece that would function smoothly in spite of any magnetic disturbances around it. A few other innovations of Tissot include production of the first watches made of plastic, stone, mother of pearl and wood.

Tissot has been a key sponsor for the Formula 1 teams of Lotus, Renault and Sauber.

Tissot has a long-standing history with sports. The company’s first association with a sporting event was in 1938, when the brand acted as official timekeeper for a Ski racing event at Villar in Switzerland. Over the years, Tissot has been the official timekeeper for a number of sporting events including hockey, fencing, basketball, racing, football and many more. The brand’s association with sports has been so close and so extensive that it has inspired the watchmaker on a number of occasions to produce timepieces specifically designed for sporting activities.

The PRS 516 Extreme Automatic is driven by the C01.211 automatic mechanical movement. The timepiece has a distinctively modern and sporty design that blends functionality with style in a very natural way. The stainless steel case is 44 mm in diameter and has a thickness of 15.73 mm. The strap is 23 mm wide and fits quite snugly on the wrist. The strap is made of black rubber with a thin yellow line on the outer edges and comes with a no-frills, traditional buckle.

The black dial features hints of yellow in places and has a rather bold design. It has three sub-dials for chronograph hours, minutes and seconds. The date is displayed in an aperture at three o’clock. White indexes mark the hours except for 12 and 6, which are shown by Arabic numerals in a bold, minimalistic font. The minutes scale lines the outer rim of the dial while a tachymeter scale is displayed on the black bezel. The caseback is designed in the style of a steering wheel of a sports car and gives the timepiece a rather muscular look. Both the dial and caseback are covered with anti-reflective sapphire crystal and the case is water resistant to a depth of 100 metres.

The PRS 516 Extreme Automatic is a typical sporting watch in terms of design and functionality. The timepiece’s rugged looks are representative of every sportsman’s audacious spirit and make the watch the perfect wrist wear for every motorsport enthusiast.