Carrera Tachymeter Racing & Monaco Vintage Limited Edition


There is little question that TAG Heuer enjoys a unique position in the world of professional motor racing. In 1911, the company launched its famous ‘Time of Trip’, the first dashboard chronograph developed for automobiles. This was followed in 1916 by the Micrograph, the first mechanical stopwatch able to accurately measure times to within 1/100th of a second, and in 1933, came the Autavia, the first dashboard chronograph for both automobiles and aviation. In 1966, the Microtimer system added a new page in the brand’s history by offering precision to 1,000th of a second.

A little motor racing history
Associated with Ferrari in the 1970s, the 1980s saw the beginning of the TAG Heuer/McLaren partnership that has evolved into one of the longest and most successful alliances between a Formula One Racing team and a sponsor in the history of Formula One. Since then, McLaren and TAG Heuer have won six Constructors World Championship titles, eight Drivers titles: three with Alain Prost - 1985, 1986, 1989; three with Ayrton Senna - 1988, 1990, 1991; and two with Mika Häkkinen - 1998 and 1999. From 1992 to 2003, TAG Heuer was named as the Official Timekeeper of the entire Formula One World Championships and since 2004, the Official Timekeeper of the Indy Racing League and the legendary Indy 500 race.
In 2005, Juan Pablo Montoya became a TAG McLaren Mercedes driver and a TAG Heuer ambassador, joining his team-mate and fellow ambassador Kimi Räikkönen, the winner of 8 Grand Prix during 2005. This unique and exceptional duo of ambassadors will be defending TAG Heuer’s colours in the 2006 Formula One World.

Avant-garde chronographs
TAG Heuer has long been the watchmaker of choice among legendary drivers like Fangio, Siffert and Senna and motor racing’s numerous aficionados. This season will be no exception, since the brand has launched three new models directly inspired by the motor racing and the automobile.
Since its creation by Jack Heuer in 1964, the Carrera chronograph has been one of TAG Heuer’s most iconic models, celebrated as much for its design as for its technological prowess. The name derives from the Carrera Panamericana Mexico, a notoriously difficult motor race of the 1950s. Worn by most F1 drivers in the 1970s, the Carrera has become the chronograph of preference for watch collectors and ardent motor racing fans.

Carrera Tachymeter Racing
The Carrera Tachymeter Racing is a welcome newcomer to the collection. All of the basic features remain intact, but the new model offers added classical elegance and pays homage to the great motor racing legends with a tachymeter on a fixed bezel for speed calculations. Its rubber bracelet, partially perforated, is inspired by the legendary universe of racing cars of the 1950s and the red hands and bevelled indices on the black dial are reminiscent of the speed counters on classic racing car dashboards. This new sporty chronograph will be available in April 2006.

Monaco Vintage Limited Edition
To celebrate the late Steve McQueen’s 75th birthday, TAG Heuer has introduced the Monaco Vintage Limited Edition, a new and more trendy version of the world-renowned square-cased chronograph.
Driving a Porsche 917 Gulf in the classic film of 1970 Le Mans, Steve McQueen insisted that he wore the complete driving suit of Jo Siffert, which, of course, included TAG Heuer’s Monaco chronograph. The famous Swiss driver and star of the 24-hour rally at Le Mans, Jo Siffert was the first of many ambassadors officially sponsored by TAG Heuer, and always proudly wore the company’s logos and timepieces.
The Monaco chronograph McQueen wore helped contribute to its elevated status, but it was above all the avant-garde styling and the break with traditional watches that enabled it to become one of TAG Heuer’s iconic timepieces. The large square case with the bold, blue dial of the Monaco re-shaped the history of watchmaking and initiated an entirely new epoch in horological aesthetics. Launched in 1969, the watch housed the revolutionary Chronomatic Calibre 11 movement and was the world’s first chronograph equipped with a micro-rotor for automatic winding.
This exciting new version is pleasingly modern having undergone an eye-catching face-lift - a white dial with the illustrious red, white, and blue bands of the driving suit that Steve McQueen wore in Le Mans. This automatic chronograph pays homage to a legendary actor and reminds us of a revolutionary period in recent watchmaking history.
Inspired by the legend and spirit of motor racing, the Limited Edition Monaco Vintage (4,000 pieces), with its tri-colour dial, Monaco logo at 6 o’clock, blue alligator bracelet with beige stitching, and pushbutton buckle is destined to become yet another classic in TAG Heuer’s stable of sports watches.

SLR for Mercedes-Benz
The first SLR chronograph, presented for the first time at BaselWorld 2004, marked an important phase in the partnership that has linked Mercedes-Benz with TAG Heuer since 1995 and with McLaren since 1985. The three high-profile companies share the same values of performance, design, prestige, innovation, and, of course, a passion for motor racing and these criteria find their roots in their mutual history. In 1955 Juan Manuel Fangio drove the Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR (Sports, Light, Racing) ‘Silver Arrow’ at the Mille Miglia, one of the most breathtaking circuits in motor racing. Fangio was wearing, as most Formula One drivers since, a TAG Heuer timepiece – simply called Heuer at the time.
After the success of the Limited Edition SLR Chronograph Calibre 36-R, the brand now presents the TAG Heuer SLR for Mercedes-Benz.
This new chronograph (43 mm) blends classicism with the avant-garde in a design that reflects the values of the SLR dream car: power, performance, motor-racing spirit, innovation and elegance. Launched in a Limited Edition of 3,500 pieces, its pushbuttons are innovatively positioned on the bezel of the case, inclined at 45 degrees; a timekeeping scale is cleverly placed inside the case on a rotating, unidirectional ring controlled by a special crown at 9 o’clock. The fixed exterior bezel, elegantly polished in a black finish and engraved ‘SLR’, is thus able to feature a tachymeter for professional speed measurement.
The dial features ten double index appliqué diamond facets, two rhodium-plated rings circling the counters at 3 and 9 o’clock and the silver TAG Heuer and Mercedes-Benz names discretely adorn the dial at 12 o’clock. Another feature of the chronograph is the elegant alligator bracelet integrated inside the lugs of the case, thus offering a streamlined profile when worn. The bracelet also features a safety buckle operated by pushbuttons and engraved with ‘SLR’.
The Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren, launched in 2003, is one of the world’s most powerful and exclusive sports cars - zero to 100 km/h in 3.8 seconds, with a top speed of over 300 km/h. The TAG Heuer SLR for Mercedes-Benz chronograph is also an exclusive watch since it is available in a Limited Edition.
Like its automobile namesake, the TAG Heuer SLR for Mercedes-Benz is an exceptional creation. Designed not only to please the automobile owners, it will bring horological joy to connoisseurs and the numerous aficionados of mechanical watchmaking.




TAG Heuer SLR for Mercedes-Benz


Source: February - March 2006 Issue