The Breitling Watch Source Forums

Hi there!!

As with every producer of long life products the producer should take precautions that it can repair them for XX years. If that means they have to stock replacement movements, so be it. That's why we all buy serviceable watches, not Swatch watches that can't be serviced.

Go to Villeroy & Boch for their tableware stuff, they will tell you exactly for how long they guarantee you can buy new parts/replacement parts for your tableware. In older times people used to buy parts as they could afford them so over the years they would have their complete set together (and the children then inherit the full set someday).

Car manufacturers are the same, they guarantee spare parts for XX amount of years AFTER the model is stopped being produced.

Why wouldn't a responsible watch manufacturer do the same. Am a huge Breitling fan, but just "casing" a Miyota movement and then not even being able to service them after a few years, is not good enough for a brand that has such high aspirations. Tools for professionals? Well then act professional please.

So long and cheers,
K

Is it possible to diagnose that a watch actually needs parts without a formal inspection? Is it 100% that any quartz watch, once opened, would need parts?

The watch still hasnt ever been properly inspected by Breitling - they wouldnt inspect the watch on the basis of their letter stating that parts are no longer available.

Wrote the email to the AD a week ago to see if there were any other options - still no reply.

*Gave them a call just now, re-explained the situation on the phone and they are hoping to suggest some way forwards tomorrow, fingers crossed.

Your original post said that the LCD was malfunctioning. It therefore needs parts, mechanical elements can be serviced, repaired, potentially replaced (even if parts have to be fabricated), you can't repair LCD elements.

I just purchased this watch as well and plan on passing it on to my children and/or grandchildren. Will they be able to get it repaired or serviced when needed? Who knows? We'll see.

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11' US Naval Aviation Centennial Airwolf L/E
Ocean Racer band
10' Avenger Seawolf Chrono "BLACKSTEEL" L/E
Diver Pro II band
08' Chronomat Evolution
SS/18K w/ SS/18K Pilot Bracelet
06' Philip Stein "SPORT"

Just got off the phone with the local Breitling office just now - very nice on the phone - they are in fact the official local Breitling outfit and thereby speak on behalf of Breitling themselves. They are not just an AD.

I also pointed them to this forum thread.

The good news - they asked me to bring the watch back down and they will try a new battery. At least they will try something.

The bad news - if the battery doesnt fix it then the only option from Breitling is now a 30% (up from 20%) discount on a new watch.

They said that an AD's (authorised dealer? ie. an authorised retailer) might be able to give a higher discount - but basically they shouldnt and if they are it would be without any support or assistance from Breitling.

Breitling is stating that in no cases do they support or give any 50% discounts.

Even if they cant repair my 11-year old watch.

If an AD does ever give a 50% discount they are not doing so with Breitlings assistance

Comments?

Well, now you at least have a dialog going with them; hope you come to an agreeable resolution.

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UN Maxi Marine Ti
B01, BEB
SOH
Aerospace Ti
Chrono SO
Omega 300 Master Co-Axial Chro
Omega PO Chrono.
AP ROO Diver
Titan Black Rolex DSOD Honeycomb Dial

This sounds like Breitling's official stance on discounts in general. When I spoke to a regional head of BUK a couple of years ago at a Breitling AD event, I said to him that it looked like a few deals were being made during the event, to which he replied with a smile and laugh, words to the effect of, "If there are any deals going on, it's between the AD and the customer, and not Breitling" (ie. BUK in this instance).

In other words it seems that BUK don;t encourage discounting, but clearly turn a blind eye to it if the AD wants to do it.

Extrapolating this to the case in hand, it would seem that Breitling are prepared to offer you an officially sanctioned discount of 20 to 30% in the event they they are unable to repair your watch. This means that Breitling will remove that 20 to 30% at source - i.e. the AD will get the watch cheaper as aswell. The AD should ideally then be prepared to "take up the slack" in my opinion and offer you 20% from their cut - i.e. resulting in a total of around 50% off a new model.

But to be honest, I thought from your first post that the sentimentality factor of the watch would prevent you from trading it anyway? If so, the fact still remains that as the watch is unrepairable due to the reasons that have been talked about a number of times on this thread, your only option will be to either source a donor watch from somewhere to canibalise for the movement, or simply put the watch in a drawer and keep it for sentimental reasons.

Other than that, then I'm afraid you're simply out of luck. Breitling cannot reproduce the movement, nor do they hold stock of it any longer, so while I agree it's far from ideal, there really are no other solutions unfortunately.

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Driver8

Site Moderator

I will get the battery checked by Breitling, if its still a no go I will see if a cyclonic cleaning from an external service centre helps. Failing that I will consign it to the safe as a wedding memento.

had another quick update:-

The discount is limited to 1000CHF (approx. 1000usd) off the catalog price (fair enough)

there is no possibility of an additional discount to make it a 50% discount (fair enough)

Breitlings offer is 20 - 30% off the catalog price.

At this point I bet that there is also no official 20year service policy from Breitling - someone please correct me if I am wrong (and I mean an Official Policy that can be verified).

The 2 year warranty sounds more like the only official policy so just keep it in mind if you are thinking of buying a quartz Breitling......

I would be a fool to buy another Breitling and perpetuate the cycle.

Plenty of other great watch brands to look at and try in my lifetime.

Peace to all.

I've got some quartz Breitling's that are 30 years old and still running fine. The Pluton movement problem is an easy fix. I have an entire drawer full of old Pluton movements that don't work but there are plenty of donor watches out there to swap movements with. Most of these can be purchased for less than $50. Don't waste your time and money with a new battery or cleaning. If the analog is working and the digital isn't, it's toast. Be happy to take it off your hands and will have it running properly by the end of the week.

Well... I recommend the iPad app from Watchtime and the free Vacheron Constantin special:

Vacheron Constantin CEO Juan - Carlos Torres in an Watchtime interview:

"When you buy a watch from Vacheron Constantin today, it's our obligation to guarantee that we'll still be able to repair it 100 years from now. That's why I stopped the development of all products for which we couldn't offer this guarantee."

Q: Can you also repair timepieces from the 18th century?
A: "Of course, 18th, 19th, 20th century, everything.

Well, I know Breitling is NOT Vacheron but a bit of that spirit would be nice.

Also, they create even the individual orders from clients (special one of a kind watches) at least twice, some parts 3 times, as "a dial might need to be changed 2 times within 100 years".

I never aspired a Vacheron Constantin before. Now I do. I just love this sense of longevity, tradition and quality craftsmanship.

An admirable policy to adopt, but as a result I guarantee VC aren't producing the lastest LCD-screened, cutting edge Superquartz models. I don't know enough about VC's current collection but I'm pretty sure quartz has never been a massive part of it.

As we've said a number of times on this thread, for me the biggeset issue is the transient nature of quartz technology. That's why you still find mechanical watches that are 200 years old still running. Buy a mechanical Breitling today and I bet that with regular servicing there'll be no question at all that it will still being running in 100 years.

If longevity (and we're talking more than 20 years here) is a primary concern (heck, it is for me), then buy mechanical. Simple as that I'm afraid.

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Driver8

Site Moderator

Driver8,

I think you are right. VC even produces for the customer designed special models at least 2 complete watches and some spare parts multiple times, that they store for the next 100 years in case they need it to repair the watch.

As you rightly said, 100 years in mechanical watchmaking is different from 100 years in quartz. Try to get a 100 year old battery design today, hahaha.

Won't work with quartz, am 100% with you on that. In electronics in 100 years the concept of a "battery" might be as strange for people as tape decks and floppy disks are for younger people today.

I had three Breitling watches that they said were not repairable, one similar style to yours:

http://www.breitlingsource.com/watch_de ... r_212.html

This watch was my father's that he always wore when he went flying. Anyway, I found their customer service at the CT office to be fantastic, however I do recommend dealing with them direct and avoiding an AD. (My local AD broke a Chrono Superocean when he was trying to show me how to use it.) Currently, they're offering 40% off a new Breitling purchase. This may vary according to the model and style you are trading in, but if you send it direct that's probably what they'll offer you.

I traded in two of the old watches and bought two new models. I had them ship me back the third and they assured me that if I want to buy a third Breitling, I can simply ship it back and get 40% off.