Can't afford the car... how about the watch instead?

"Look at their wrist." That was the advice given to a mate of mine by his boss when he took on a job flogging high end cars in London a few years ago. In the swanky part of town where the showroom sat it wasn't uncommon for scruffy looking blokes to wander in and start walking around the cars and jumping in them.

Unshaven and looking like Ali G most were footballers who could afford an Aston Martin, Porsche or a Lamborghini with a kick or two of the round ball in one match. The giveaway was their hugely expensive timepieces.

Today every car brand has a watch in the accessory range, usually cheap and tasteless with the appeal of one you'd get in a service station promotion. However premium watch and car brands have often collaborated to attract the same deep-pocketed clientele. It is an association that probably grew out of early regularity trials, when an accurate and reliable watch was imperative for completing a course in a set time.

In modern times the fancy watch is more a fashion accessory now. And if you can't afford the car then perhaps you can afford the watch, so let's take a look at some of the partnerships.

Ferdinand Porsche's grandson is nicknamed Butzy and he established Porsche Design in the early 1970s. While prices for a Porsche kick off at close to one hundred grand, Porsche Design watches start from a surprisingly affordable $1000 for the Sport Classic chronograph. They are sold through Porsche dealerships, so you can get up close and personal with your favourite Stuttgart stormer while strapping on your own Porsche.

Morgan is famous for using wood collected from the nearby Malvern Hills in the UK to make its cars, but their Christopher Ward-designed Morgan-branded watches are high tech. The C1 Morgan Plus 8 Chronometer celebrates the V8 sports car's 50th anniversary. Much cheaper and with no chance of a splinter the watch is yours for just $3700.

Bremont has been in cahoots with Jaguar since it designed the dash clock for the Jag C-X75, and now it offers a watch with its sub-dials inspired by the E-Type. The case pays homage to the E-Type's steering wheel, although it isn't made of timber. You won't get any change out of $75,000 for an E-Type, but a Bremont Jaguar MkII Chronometer will only empty your wallet to the tune of $9700. Bargain!

Want to brag about a timepiece more than the car? Look no further than the $368,000 Bentley Bentayga and show your friend its Mulliner Tourbillion by Breitling, the world's most expensive dashboard clock, boasting a six-figure sum. These two brands have been together since Bentley won LeMans in 2003 and recently Breitling announced a tie-up with British motorcycle maker Norton.

Rolex, the company that has just renewed its sponsorship deal with the Australian Grand Prix and has ex-F1 ace Mark Webber as an ambassador, created one of the world's most iconic watches, the Daytona. A new Daytona costs around forty grand but in 2017 Paul Newman's 1968 Rolex Daytona fetched an astonishing $22,060,811. That would buy you roughly 83 of the latest 911 Porsche Carreras or 1378 Suzuki Balenos.

Would you like to put a McLaren in your shed? Be prepared to shell out $382,000 before options for the 540C entry model. But armed with about 100 grand less you can fling a McLaren Orange titanium and carbon Richard Mille RM 11-03 McLaren Automatic Flyback Chronograph on your wrist. With just 500 made they are way more exclusive than a McLaren 540C as well.

In 2018 TW Steel celebrated the 50th anniversary of Holden's first Bathurst with the GTS 327 Monaro. A pristine example will set you back one hundred and fifty grand. However, the watch that features a large number 13 (Bruce McPhee's winning Monaro number) cost $327 and only 327 were made.

From Bulgari comes the $18,000 Maserati Gransport. Looking like the rev counter on a 41mm face, it features the famous Trident logo. Given the starting price of a Maserati is close to $150,000 the watch seems like a bargain.

Most would have thought a marriage between Aston Martin and Omega was a given but only in the James Bond movies (in the books he wore a Rolex and drove a Bentley). Announced at the 2018 Geneva Motorshow was a tie up with Aston Martin and TAG Heuer. To kick off the partnership TAG Heuer created the Carrera Heuer 01 Aston-Martin Special Edition with its skeletonized dial and honey-comb pattern resembling the AM's signature grille. Additionally the chronograph pushers resemble a car engine's pistons and the standard Carrera case has been fitted with lugs to look like an Aston Martin. For $9380 it is one way to get close to the Aston Martin brand.

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the GT-R Nissan enlisted Italdesign to create the GT-R50 concept. Then Nissan partnered with Seiko to create the Nissan Grand Seiko. A limited-edition piece based on the Grand SBGC223G chronograph. It's completely customisable and, priced at an eye-watering $251,000, is exclusive to Seiko's Tokyo flagship store. If you still have a spare $321,500 in your kick you can drive away in a Nissan GT-R NISMO R35. A watch and a Nissan for $572 grand. What were they thinking?

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