MHD Daily Driver Reverse Panda - handsome watch at a reasonable price

Since leaving his job as head designer for Morgan in 2012, 40-year-old Matthew Humphries has juggled his life between freelance work, lecturing, finding time to drive the beloved MGB he bought 18 years ago – oh, and running his own watch brand.

He founded the latter in 2014, customising classic Seikos before creating his own car-themed watch, the SQ1 Daily Driver, which took inspiration for its dial from the rev counters of classic 911s (Humphries has one of those, too).

Since then, the MHD watch offering has expanded to include more than 20 designs, most of which major on a vintage vibe – and all of which are affordable.

As well as benefiting from the Humphries touch, the watches are tough and reliable thanks to the use of tried and tested Japanese movements from both Seiko and Miyota. MHD watches are design-led rather than being big on mechanisms.

The majority of movements are quartz-powered, but Humphries introduced his first mechanical model in 2017 and now there are several of these in the range – although the latest MHD number mixes a bit of both, since it features Seiko’s VK64 Meca-Quartz movement that combines battery-powered timekeeping with a mechanical chronograph.

Called the Daily Driver Reverse Panda on account of having white chronograph counters on a black background, it revisits one of the most popular car watch looks of the 1960s and ’70s – although Humphries has added a few of his own distinctive twists.

The matt black dial, for example, takes the form of a Panerai-like sandwich construction with laser cut-outs that enable the glow-in-the-dark ‘vintage’ Super-LumiNova to shine through from the layer below.

The material is also applied to the hour and minute hands, while a touch of red on the central seconds hand and chronograph pointers invokes a suitably racy feel.

What really impresses (especially for the price) is the quality of the 40mm case, which is a four-part affair that combines a main body in stainless steel with a knurled barrel section treated with a black diamond-like-carbon finish.

The knurling is repeated on the crown and chronograph pushers, while other nice details include a bevel-edge crystal, a chamfered bezel with a combination of brushed and polished finishes and a screw-down case back.

As standard, the watch is supplied on a black, perforated rally strap fitted with quick-release spring bars to swap it for straps of different materials, colours and designs.

The first batch is due for delivery in December – and there’s a worthwhile discount for those who pre-order now.

MHD Daily Driver Reverse Panda, £395, or £355 on pre-order. mhdwatches.com

No Chopard watch makes it into production unless co-president Karl-Friedrich Scheufele has approved every step of the design process, so it’s testament to the partnership Scheufele formed with Bamford Watch Department two years ago that he allowed BWD to use the Mille Miglia GTS Power Control as the basis for this special edition. Made from bead-blasted titanium, it was intended to be built tough. To prove it BWD founder George Bamford wore the prototype while competing in Mexico’s NORRA 1000 desert race. It survived unscathed.

Chopard Mille Miglia GTS Power Control ‘Desert Racer’, £9380. chopard.com

Pininfarina might be best known as a specialist coachbuilder famed for celebrated car design but, these days, it’s a one-stop design shop for anything from pens to electric scooters. Pininfarina designs watches, too – both ultra high-end in partnership with Bovet and more affordable such as this 44mm, hybrid smartwatch produced with tech firm Globics. It offers wellness features, can be teamed with a phone app and is available in four case colours and four dial colours.

Pininfarina Senso Hybrid, £335. pininfarina-hybridwatchbyglobics.com

Precision is written by renowned luxury goods specialist Simon de Burton