Pre-Baselworld 2018 – TAG Heuer Carrera Heuer 02 Manufacture 43mm

The Carrera is turning 55 and it never ceases to evolve… During its long life, the TAG Heuer Carrera has taken various forms and incorporated numerous innovations and movements. Yet, it was born a chronograph and remains mainly a chronograph. For Baselworld 2018, TAG will introduce a new edition of its icon, another technical, sporty version, this time with the newly developed Calibre Heuer 02 inside.

While the brand has the ability to play with vintage codes and faithful reeditions – see the Autavia or the Monza – the team made the deliberate choice to modernise the watch instead of recreating a watch that looks to the past. This strategy has been deployed over the entire collection when TAG introduced the Carrera Heuer 01, a modular, large and bold piece that incorporated the skeletonised version of the Chronograph calibre 1887 – named here Heuer 01. At 45mm, with angular shapes and a mix of technical materials, it was a strong choice, but one that proved to be wise, since this collection is now the brand’s bestseller.

This year, TAG Heuer revisits this watch and introduces some updates – mainly mechanical ones. While the previous Carrera Heuer 01 was based on a movement produced by TAG but not developed by the brand (based on the Seiko 6S37, which TAG Heuer had licensed), the new TAG Heuer Carrera Heuer 02 is powered by a truly in-house movement – based on the Calibre 80 that we thought would be cancelled but that made a comeback into the Autavia’s case last year.

This movement has several technical delicacies. It is an integrated automatic chronograph, with an 80-hour power reserve. It is activated by a column-wheel and a vertical clutch – an interesting combination that provides a smooth and accurate run of the chronograph – as well as a 4Hz frequency. Another advantage compared to the Heuer 01: the movement of the TAG Heuer Carrera Heuer 02 has a balanced and more elegant 3-6-9 layout for the counters. To stay in line with the collection, it is presented in a skeletonised version – or at least a no-dial version with a graphic openworked main-plate.

The case of the TAG Heuer Carrera Heuer 02 measures 43mm in diameter – the small version will be introduced first, but we can imagine that a 45mm variant will follow. The case sticks to the same angular shape and relies on a modular construction, where all elements (central container, bezel, lugs, middle-lug insert) can be switched to create new editions. This is why this model is launched in 5 different variants:

• Steel case, black middle-lug elements, black bezel, black dial with silver sub-counters, brown leather strap
• Steel case, steel middle-lug elements, blue bezel, blue dial with silver sub-counters, blue leather strap
• PVD steel case with carbon lugs and bezel, black middle lug elements, black dial with black sub-counters, black rubber strap
• Full ceramic case and bracelet, black dial with silver sub-counters, black bezel
• PVD steel case with black middle lug elements, pink gold bezel and lugs

The availability and price of the TAG Heuer Carrera Heuer 02 have not yet been announced. The approximate price of the steel version should be around USD 5,300. An additional 45mm version with GMT function will also be launched. More details on www.tagheuer.com.