TAG Heuer Carrera Chronograph 42mm
The recently launched TAG Heuer Carrera Chronograph 42mm coincides with the 60th anniversary of the Carrera collection. Offered in a choice of black or blue sunray-brushed dials, this latest model features the Calibre HEUER02 Automatic movement. Mark-McArthur Christie, a fan of vintage Heuer watches, shares his thoughts.
Carrera 60th anniversary
It’s got to the point where journalists passing TAG Heuer’s HQ on La Chaux-de-Fonds’ rue Louis-Joseph Chevrolet have started ducking. If the firm keeps shooting new Carreras out of the doors at the current rate, they’re going to take to wearing helmets. These two references join a bevy of new Carreras already released this year and it’s barely the end of Spring.
You’d have had to be living under a horological rock not to know that 2023 marks the Carrera’s 60th anniversary. They’re certainly making the most of it.
And why not? The Carrera has long since fulfilled the three criteria of becoming a Watchworld classic. It’s served its time, it’s got a clear function and it has been associated with more than enough cool events, people and stories to pass muster.
Reference 2447 Carrera
Let’s take the starting point – the ref. 2447 Carrera – launched in 1963. You got a simple, plain manual-winding chronograph with three registers (running seconds, an hour counter and a minute counter), all powered by a Valjoux 72 and housed in a plain stainless steel case. You didn’t, of course, get a date. Why would you need to know the date when you’re flat through the bottom of Eau Rouge? The date only turned up three years later in the Landeron 189 movement ref. 3147 Dato.
Porsche 911
The best watches are the ones designed to do a job. The Carrera’s was to time races (and anything else for that matter), and Jack Heuer’s focus on simplicity of form and function made sure it did and in the cleanest way possible. A ‘60s Carrera is as stripped back and functional as the inaugural Porsche 911, both released in the same year. There are no fripperies and no fuss on either; everything has a job to do.
A design with this level of focus and purity can struggle to survive the constant updating that the market demands. Yet, rather like the 911, the 2023 Carerra is as absolutely recognisable as the offspring of The Master’s original 1963 watch, even if the underpinnings, materials and elements of the design have evolved.
TAG Heuer Carrera Chronograph 42mm
Where the ref. 2447 feels almost fragile today with its delicate lugs and 36mm case, the new Carreras have beefed up a bit at 42mm. The cases are thicker, the movements heavier and even the crown has piled on a few pounds. This is no bad thing – the new watches feel hefty and substantial, as though they’ll take a knock or two without bother. Everything’s still stainless steel, though – crown, pushers and case. The difference is that today the crown screws down and the case offers 100m water resistance. It’d be a brave man who wore an original Carrera to the pool (we can recommend a few good watchmakers if you do, however). And, rather than the solid caseback of the 2447, the new watch lets you see what’s going on inside with a sapphire display back.
Valjoux 72
Up front things are similar, but not identical. That’s because the movement construction of the Valjoux 72 and the HEUER02 auto is different. The 2447 and its successors had running seconds at 9, an hour counter at 6 and a 30 minute totaliser at 3. The CBN201C.FC6542 and ‘43 (naming conventions are one area that hasn’t benefited from retaining Heuer père’s approach to simplicity) move the hours to 9, the running seconds to 6 and minutes to the sub dial at 3. There is also – purists look away now – a date at 6, although it’s the sort of thing only a nailed-on Heuerophile would fuss about.
The watch keeps the faith, though, with its approach to hand colour. Heuer famously said “many [earlier chronographs] were equipped with artillery telemeters with spiral scales which made their dials difficult to read. I wanted a dial that had a clear, clean design…this was the secret behind the fresh, clean and uncluttered appearance of my first Carrera”. Although the early Carreras were clear to read, it was the 1000 Series from the 1980s that began using a common colour to make the most important chrono functions simpler to read at a glance. These new watches do likewise – chrono hours, minutes and seconds stand out with red hands, contrasting with the plain silver (actually rhodium plate) time hands. You’ll be able to read your chronograph without any bother at all, no matter what you’re timing.
Sunray-brushed dial
Positioned beneath the hands is a black (or blue) sunray-brushed dial with an orange gradient track around the foot of the bezel. This turns from orange to red as it moves around the dial edge. TAG Heuer says “It creates a colourful crescendo and provides the watch with a visual soundtrack that mimics the sound of a race car building up speed.” Hmm.
Calibre HEUER02 Automatic
Powering the watch is the HEUER02 movement. Launched in 2016, it’s been around long enough itself to earn a few plaudits. The basic stats are 31mm diameter and just under 7mm high, so it’ll do duty around almost the whole TAG Heuer range. The balance runs at 28,800vph (4Hz) and will, unusually, keep doing so for around 80 hours (there’s a single barrel but a looooong mainspring). Everything is controlled with a column wheel and a vertical clutch, and the pushers are thoroughly satisfying to use. They snick, rather than snap. Yet despite this power/balance cleverness, there are only 168 components to the movement. This relative paucity of parts gladdens both watchmakers and the people who pay the servicing bill every few years (the vertical clutch will help there too).
The movement’s finishing is also worth a look. Not in a Haute Horlogerie ‘oooh, look at meeeee!’ way, but in the sense that it’s beautifully engineered. No, there’s no anglage and you won’t find any gold chatons, but what you do find is classically elegant watchmaking that’s just right; a mix of graining and Geneva striping.
Calfskin strap
There’s no faffing about with the strap either. You don’t get a choice; it’s calfskin leather with a stainless steel folding clasp with double safety push buttons. That’s it. You could find a bracelet to fit easily enough but there’s no particular reason to do so. Like the 2447, it’s a watch that works best on a simple strap.
Closing remarks
It would be pretty easy to be cynical about the 60th anniversary of the Carrera and it’s an absolute open goal for marketing departments, but this is a watch that’s part of the fabric of the industry and on so many collectors’ ‘want’ lists. And TAG Heuer aren’t daft – they know that if they stray too far from the Carerra’s original concept they’ll lose the magic. As the man himself said, “The Carrera exudes modernity and elegance thanks to its clean, ultra-legible design. This timeless style, as well as its bold and daring spirit, have been the keys to its longevity”. In my opinion, this one looks like another win.
Further reading
Technical specifications
- Model: TAG Heuer Carrera Chronograph 42mm
- Reference: CBN201C.FC6542 (black sunray-brushed dial) / CBN201D.FC6543 (blue sunray-brushed dial)
- Case: stainless steel case, diameter 42mm, water resistance 10ATM (100 metres), sapphire crystal to front; exhibition caseback.
- Functions: hours, minutes, small seconds, date, chronograph
- Movement: Calibre Heuer 02, automatic movement, frequency 28,800 vph (4Hz), power reserve 80 hours
- Strap: black /blue calfskin strap. Steel folding clasp with double safety push buttons
- Price: £5,000 (RRP as of 29.5.2023)