Talking Rare Cars And Even Rarer Watches With Putnam Leasing CEO Steve Posner

Rarely do two worlds collide as often and as kindly as watches and cars. Aside from the obvious practicality of clocks in cars or the history chronographs on the racetrack, enthusiasts passionate about automobiles seem to be naturally drawn to timepieces as well. Whether it’s an appreciation for the mechanical engineering or the love of good design, it is undeniable that the two industries are kindred spirits. Case in point: Steve Posner, CEO of Putnam Leasing.

Steve Posner started out in the car industry working for luxury car dealerships and leasing companies, delivering cars to customers. In the decades since, he’s become a mainstay in the exotic and vintage car leasing business at Miller Motorcars and Putnam Leasing. It’s an area of expertise that probably has its roots in Posner’s having owned and sold hundreds of cars over the years. It’s also enabled him to collect more than a few very extraordinary timepieces.
 

He admittedly gravitates towards cars from the ‘70s since he started in the business around then. Posner prefers “quirky and interesting cars,” as he puts it but admitted that he would buy cars “just because they look good.” It quickly became obvious that’s how he curates his watch collection as well.  “Quirky” is one way to put it, but “eclectic” might be more accurate.
 

I sat down with Posner in the lounge of the Miller Motorcars Pagani dealership in Greenwich, Connecticut, to chat about his favorite pieces in both of his collections.

“I’ve owned Porsches, Ferraris, Bentleys, some 20 Mercedes SLs over the years, but my favorite car that I’ve ever owned, and I still do, is my vintage Mercedes 300TD Wagon. My kids hate it because of the way it sounds, but I told them if I can figure out a way to fit it with airbags, it’s going to be the car they learn to drive with.

“It’s easily my top car. Mine is super clean. Like, really, really mint. You could pull up to the fanciest restaurant in a Rolls-Royce or a Ferrari, but when I pull up in my Mercedes wagon, everybody looks and showers it with compliments.”
 

“When I turned 40, I bought a Bentley Mulsanne as a gift to myself. It was probably the most reliable car I ever owned, although I didn’t own it very long. It was maybe a $30,000-$40,000 car back then. When I was ready to get rid of it, I leased it to my stockbroker, and then when she was looking for a new car, she found someone for me to lease it to. So money-wise, it was a pretty good car!”
 

“The watch I always identified with as a young man in the automobile business was Rolex. If you bought a Rolex, you were successful. All my bosses wore Rolexes. I wish I still had some watches I sold over the years. I wish I still had watches I sold only a couple of years ago since the market is more insane right now than the automobile business!

“I picked this one up because it has an incredibly interesting background. I know who the driver is who won it. I’m into racing and motorsport.”
 

“I picked this one up because I love the design of the face and that they only made it for about a year – or a year and a half – before they came out with the first official Daytona with ‘Daytona’ branding.

“The dealer that I work with, out in California, sent me a picture of it before he put it on the site because he knows I like pretty obscure stuff. And just to show the volatility of the watch, the asking price has gone up 20% in the last two months.”
 

“The dealer I got the Pre-Daytona from, out in California, had this on Instagram, and as soon as I saw it, I called him and had him send it to me right away. It’s white gold, with a walnut face and silver markers, which Rolex did not make a lot of. It made a lot of yellow gold watches with the walnut, but this combination is very rare.”
 

(Photography by Watchonista)