EDITOR’S PICK: TAG Heuer’s new breed – the Carrera Heuer 01
Felix ScholzEditor’s Note: These days TAG Heuer’s contemporary new Carrera is a defined part of the watch landscape – coming in a wide range of colours and materials and decked out with diamonds and tourbillons. There’s even a slightly smaller 43mm version. It’s easy to forget just how surprising and ‘new’ this design was when it was first released back in 2015. This is what we thought then.
The story in a second:
The TAG Heuer Carrera Heuer-01 is emblematic of TAG Heuer under the stewardship of Jean-Claude Biver; a bold new look at a bold new price.
The press release description of the Heuer 01 is “The backbone of the new collection” – it’s the first watch in a series that will do the heavy lifting in terms of changing the general perception of who TAG Heuer are and what sort of watches they make. And speaking of lifting, look at this thing. It’s never skipped a leg day in its life. In the metal, it is built.
But marketing aside, this absolutely is the watch that embodies Jean-Claude Biver’s vision of TAG Heuer. In the words of Guy Sémon, General Director, the Carrera Heuer 01 is “the first opus of the new philosophy behind the Carrera” – shifting the collection into a more avant-garde space – full of disruptive design and challenged perceptions. And importantly the Carrera Heuer 01 will make the in-house manufacture and their higher-end production and finishing techniques of TAG Heuer (previously the realm of their Haute Horlogerie departments) accessible to a much wider audience.
The watch itself is impressive. The 45mm case is completely new, with a 12 part modular construction that allows for a great degree of flexibility – Mr Sémon also foreshadowed that we’d be seeing broader implementation of modular cases, saying “it is a trend for the future.” Luckily it also looks good.
Even more impressive than the case is the skeletonised, and highly technical dial, which allows TAG Heuer to showcase a range of different techniques and finishes on one dial. It should be noted that a few details will change when the watch goes into production – the logo will move from the crystal, instead being applied onto the chronograph bridge. The date will also be changed to make it more visible.
The skeletonised dial also allows TAG Heuer to showcase their manufacture movements. In this case the newly branded Heuer 01 is in essence a heavily modified Calibre 1887, with a skeletonised chronograph bridge, skeletonized rotor and a snappy red column wheel. These changes bring the 1887 in line with the brand’s new avant-garde strategic direction.
As a complete package the Carrera Heuer 01 is the business. It’s a departure from the Carreras we’re familiar and comfortable with – and the influence of Jean-Claude Biver is clear. But what makes this watch most appealing is the price – the watch will retail at a very aggressive $6700 AUD.
TAG Heuer Carrera Heuer 01 Australian pricing
The Heuer 01 will retail for $6,700 AUD.