The Vacheron Constantin Overseas Tourbillon Titanium, Now In Ruby Red

Vacheron Constantin’s Overseas luxury sports watch family is now in its third generation, but its roots trace back to the 222 model of 1977. A well-represented collection with complications and straightforward time-and-date models, the Overseas is widely acclaimed for its attractive design, high-end finishings, in-house movements and versatility. In 2019, a tourbillon was added to the Overseas collection, bringing a dose of technical virtuosity to the mix without jeopardising the credentials of a luxury sports watch designed for everyday wear. Enhancing the concept of everyday comfort further, in 2024, the Overseas Tourbillon donned a more technical lightweight titanium suit paired with a blue lacquered dial. Back again for round two, the new titanium tourbillon flaunts an enticing ruby-red dial.

While the connection between a historic tourbillon regulator and a contemporary sports watch is not always obvious, there are many people out there who thrill to the spectacle of a tourbillon but don’t necessarily want a traditional, fancy gold watch receptacle. The combination of a relatively delicate tourbillon regulator inside a resilient titanium case, with a soft-iron casing ring, not only gives the watch a sportier, more technical edge but also positions it for daily wear.

Prized for its hypoallergenic, lightweight, and corrosion-resistant properties, Grade 5 titanium is used to create the 42.5mm x 10.39mm case, crown, bezel, and integrated bracelet. Although more difficult to work with, the finishings of the titanium case highlight its signature geometry and thin profile. The tonneau-shaped base, for example, features vertical brushed surfaces and polished flanks, while the brightly polished six-armed Maltese cross bezel rests on top of a sandblasted base.

The novelty of this 2026 edition is the colour chosen for the dial. While the brand’s “deep red” classification does not convey the colour’s richness, describing dial colours is notoriously tricky. Looking at our photographs, I would describe it as the colour of a young wine with violet-red undertones or perhaps even the colour of a pinkish-red ruby. Catching the light with almost metallic reflections due to the sunburst satin-brushed finish, this dial is going to get a lot of admiring looks.

The double minutes flange is lacquered with applied white gold indices on the first track and light-blue Arabic numerals at 5-minute intervals on the outermost track. Like the indices, the white gold hour and minute hands are treated with blue-emission Super-LumiNova. The large tourbillon aperture at 6 o’clock reveals the 1-minute tourbillon regulator secured by the mirror-polished Maltese cross cage. Matching the white and light-blue minute markings, the seconds are indicated on the periphery of the tourbillon.

Unlike most Overseas models with 150m depth ratings, the Overseas Tourbillon is limited to 50 metres, a constraint imposed by the ultra-thin movement. Visible on the reverse, VC’s in-house automatic calibre 2160 has a thickness of just 5.65mm and is powered by a 22k gold peripheral rotor, arming the barrel with an 80-hour power reserve. Finished according to VC’s high standards, the movement is decorated with circular graining, Côtes de Genève on the bridges, and chamfered and polished screws.

As mentioned, versatility is a key feature of the Overseas, and the watch comes with the brand’s DIY interchangeable system and three options: an integrated titanium bracelet with a triple-blade folding clasp and comfort-adjustment (4mm); a rubber strap matching the dial colour; and a white rubber strap – both with titanium clasps that can be changed without tools. Lightweight but with a heavyweight price tag, the Overseas Tourbillon retails for EUR 170,000.

More information at Vacheron-Constantin.com.