Hands-On With The Racing-Inspired Depancel Allure Automatic Chronograph
In racing, the combination of orange with black or blue is famous. While it is not unique to the racing world, many people immediately associate the two. Sure, we have seen many more colors in the past, but to me, orange and blue ooze racing class. The Depancel Allure Automatic Chronograph celebrates its racing style with that combination of colors. The French brand predominantly focuses on creating chronographs rooted in the glory days of racing. This new Allure Automatic Chronograph, however, takes a more modern approach. It’s time to find out more.
About two months ago, I reviewed the Depancel Allure Manual Chronograph. The design of that watch has a very distinct 1970s feel that I quite liked. The brand has created a significantly more modern silhouette for this new Allure Automatic Chronograph that is part of the same Allure series. On top of that, this is the first Depancel watch to come at a €2K+ price point. Does the new Allure Automatic Chronograph have what it takes to win the hearts of racing fans worldwide? Let’s see.
The story of the new Depancel Allure Automatic Chronograph
Depancel has released quite a few interesting racing-inspired watches. However, as I said, most of them are affordable, with prices predominantly between €500 and €1,000. With this new Allure Automatic Chronograph, the French brand introduces a watch that is almost €2,500. It’s a significant step that raises the question of whether the new model can live up to the steeper price. The watch will be available in two different versions. The first has a silver dial with orange accents and a black bezel insert. The second is the model we had for review, which features a blue dial with orange accents and a black bezel insert.
Looking at the designs of these two watches, I get TAG Heuer Carrera vibes. The Carrera is one of the defining racing chronographs of our time, but Depancel has given its new Allure Automatic Chronograph enough character to make it stand out. Quite a few nice details ensure that your eyes will keep returning to this watch when you have it on your wrist.
The Allure Automatic Chronograph makes no excuses.
But let’s start with some basic specs. The Allure Automatic Chronograph has a 43mm stainless steel case that measures 15mm thick, 48.5mm long, and 22mm between the lugs. On the right side of it, we find pump-style pushers and a push/pull crown with an orange band. The case profile does not feel as chunky as the numbers will have you believe. This is the result of the layered feel of the case and the box-shaped crystal that adds significantly to the thickness. The case is water resistant to 100 meters and features a mix of brushed and polished finishes.
Importantly, the lugs are relatively short, ensuring that the watch is fairly easy to wear, even for people with smaller wrists. On top of the case is a thin, sloping bezel with a black insert bearing a tachymeter scale in silver and orange. With a bigger case and a slim bezel like this, there is plenty of room for the dial to shine.
A detailed blue dial
The blue dial consists of two main parts. The outer ring has a circular-brushed finish and is home to the minute/chronograph-seconds track along with applied indices filled with white lume. The dial’s center has a nice texture reminscent of radiator grilles and holds the three sub-dials, which also flow into the outer portion. As you can see, the sub-dials feature orange highlights and hands that correspond with the orange central chronograph hand, the orange markers for every five minutes on the dial’s outer track, and the orange part of the tachymeter scale. Quite a bit is going on here, but overall, the layout is balanced.
More details that might not stand out immediately are the Depancel-logo-shaped marker at 12 and the date window between 4 and 5 o’clock. The latter is placed pretty far inside, almost sandwiched between the sub-dials at 3 and 6 o’clock. Consequently, it hardly stands out at first glance. I’m not sure if that is a good thing, but wouldn’t have been any better to have the date window placed further between the hour markers. As we all know, though, the placement is dependent upon the movement inside.
The Sellita SW510 automatic chronograph movement
Speaking of which, if you turn the watch around, you get a good view of the Sellita SW510 that powers the watch. This automatic chronograph movement operates at 28,800vph and has a 62-hour power reserve. The overall finish is industrial, with the rotor featuring a Geneva-striped pattern and the Depancel logo. This is the first time we have seen a Sellita movement used in a Depancel watch.
It shows that the brand is ambitious as previous movements for different models were more affordable and kept the price down significantly. Last year, the brand also released an Allure Jürgen Clauss limited edition powered by the Valjoux 7753 movement. That makes this the second step toward Depancel using better movements, and I can only applaud that.
Wearing the Allure Automatic Chronograph
The blue Allure Automatic Chronograph comes fitted with a blue leather strap with contrasting orange stitching. Alternatively, you can get the watch with a brown or black leather strap, and Depancel also offers an H-link bracelet if you prefer that. I like the look with the blue leather strap, which is incredibly comfortable. The 22mm width is perfect for balancing the watch on the wrist, and the black lining is very soft to the touch.
Once on the wrist, the first thing that stands out is that the watch feels very well made. It’s a sturdy timepiece that sits nicely on my 19cm wrist. I can wear a 43mm timepiece easily, so the Allure Automatic Chronograph felt right at home. However, it’s worth noting that due to our photo-shooting schedule, you see the watch on my colleague Daan’s 17cm wrist in these photos. When I see how it fits him, it makes me realize that I wouldn’t have minded seeing the watch smaller at 40–41mm.
I would still have the incredible wrist presence it has now, but I would probably attract a bigger audience immediately. Still, wearing the watch was a great experience. Besides feeling very well made overall, operating the watch feels nice. The pushers give reassuring clicks, and the crown is a joy.
Final thoughts on the Depancel Allure Automatic Chronograph
Overall, I like this Depancel Allure Automatic Chronograph quite a bit, but you have to put the watch into context. As the brand focuses on racing chronographs, its watches target a specific audience. While I might not be part of that audience, I did enjoy my time with the watch. I can also see that many people love the romance of racing and would love to own a racing chronograph.
This Depancel Allure Automatic Chronograph could be the perfect pick for those looking for a qualitative and well-built racing-inspired chronograph with many nice details and solid movement. As a result, the €2,400 list price seems perfectly justified. Depancel keeps slowly expanding its collection with new models that all find their roots in racing’s great past. But with this new Allure Automatic Chronograph, the brand takes a firm step into the future. It will be interesting to see if that future holds more watches like this one. The first results are rather promising.
For more information, visit the official Depancel website. Also, let us know what you think about this new Depancel Allure Automatic Chronograph in the comments section.
