Few modern TAG Heuer watches have left as much of an impression as the first time that I saw the Monaco Vintage (CAW2118), which was released in 2005 as a limited edition of 4000 watches to mark what would have been the 75th birthday of Steve McQueen.
It was an outrageous design: a crisp white dial (one of the first times a Monaco has been sold with a white dial) matched with bold blue and red stripes on the right hand-side of the dial and with red sub-dials and hands. The design of course was based on the driving suit worn by Steve McQueen in the 1971 movie Le Mans, which is the movie that would eventually make the Monaco the iconic watch it is today.
The success of the Monaco Vintage meant that it was inevitable that other versions would follow, presenting TAG Heuer with the same dilemma that any watch company with a hit Limited Edition faces: How many Limited Edition versions with the same design theme can be made before the magic is lost?
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The Monaco 24 Concept that was shown at Baselworld last year is being prepared for an Q4 2010 launch. The watch has a titanium PVD case and the Calibre 36 (El Primero) movement.
A quick re-fresh- The Monaco 24 uses the same case as the Monaco LS, with the curved crystal wrapping around the side of the case. The Monaco 24 has bespoke pushers and crown, and swaps the LS-layout for more traditional sub-dials.
The dial has the famous “Gulf” colours also used on the Limited Edition Gulf Monaco released last year.
The real magic to this watch is firstly the black PVD titanium (reminescent of the famous Heuer Monaco PVD) and secondly the “floating” round dial that sits suspended in the case.
TAG Heuer will release the Monaco 24 in the fourth quarter of 2010 alongside the new Grey Heuer Monaco….and a third “heritage” watch.
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TAG Heuer have shown a Grey re-edition TAG Heuer Monaco at Baselworld.
The watch is very similar to the 40th anniversary TAG Heuer Monaco released this time last year, with the only real difference- apart from the colour of the dial- being that this Monaco uses the new, larger 39mm case from the Calibre 12 Monaco, rather than the 38mm of the 40th anniversary model.
The hands, pushers and leather strap seem to be identical, and I assume that this will use the same Calibre 11 movement.
No word on pricing or timing yet, but it will probably be a Q4 10 watch rather than something that will be in the stores shortly.
At this stage, the watch will be released in a limited edition of 1,860.
These photos were shot through glass and with lots of overhead light, so its difficult to properly capture the colour and finish of the dial- its more textured and grained that these photos would indicate.
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Over the last few weeks TAG Heuer has released a Monaco V4 iPhone application- the first TAG Heuer mobile application, or app, which offers some great video and photos of the new V4 Monaco. Far from being just a novelty download, the use of a dedicated mobile app- whether it be for the iPhone, Nexus One, Palm or other platform, is perhaps the most exciting new marketing channel for watch companies since the development of the internet itself. Before explaining why, here is a brief overview of the app itself.
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TAG Heuer have recently announced a new Monaco for 2010- the CAW2114, which is the first black Monaco with red highlights- the “Black McQueen”.
The hands on this new Monaco are a clear nod to the design of the original Heuer Monaco hands, which had thin slivers of red extending half-way up the hour and minute hand, meeting the lume filler. The new Monaco is available on the traditional crocodile leather strap, as well as a rubber strap, which seems to fit the look of this watch better.
Like all new Calibre 12 TAG Heuer Monaco’s, the watch has a 39mm case (vs. the old Calibre 17 TAG Heuer Monaco at 38mm) and features sapphire crystal rather than plexiglass. While these seem like small changes, when you look at the watches side-by-side the contrast become more apparent.
All of the new Monaco range have what TAG Heuer are calling a “Calibre 12″ movement- and its described as being based on the “Dubois Depraz 2008″- which is a little confusing, as this seems to be a reference to the chronograph module, rather than the base movement itself.
The Calibre 17 was an ETA 2894-2, while the new Calibre 12 is actually an ETA 2892 with the Dubois Depraz chrono module- in fact, the Calibre 17 (ETA 2894) was an ETA chronograph movement based on the 2892- so essentially the only difference between the Calibre 12 and the Calibre 17 is that TAG Heuer have replaced an ETA Chronograph with a Dubois-Depraz one. For more information on these movements, read more at this link.
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The TAG Heuer Monaco V4 has featured a few times on Calibre 11- its a real landmark watch for TAG, both in terms of the technology driving the movement and in terms of the price point that the watch will be sold for.
At the Heuer Collectors summit in 2008, a group of us was able to hold the advanced prototype- its an intriguing design watching as the Tungsten weight slides up and down to power the four barrels.
The case design in similar to that of the new TAG Heuer Monaco LS- a wrap-around glass design that is beautifully integrated into the case. Its a thick case- almost feels the same size as the Monaco 69.
Over at Watchprosite, a poster has been lucky enough to try out the watch (still a prototype) in person and has taken some fantastically detailed photos. Take a look at the 48 (!) jewelled movement and the detail of the timing belts.
The estimated EUR70,000 will push this watch well outside the range of most Heuer and TAG Heuer collectors, but lets hope we see the V4 technology used in other more accessible watches in the future
See the post here:
Photo: Nicholas/ Amanico
TAG Heuer have released several limited edition Monaco models, including the re-edition variants detailed in a previous post. You have probably also seen the three Gulf/ Vintage limited editions which TAG have released over the last couple of years. But have you ever seen one of these?
This is a very rare limited edition of 200 watches issued by the famous French watch boutique Ferret in the Cote d’Azur. Its hard to see from the photo, but the watch has “2001″ in red numerals just under the Heuer logo. TAG did release a silver dial Monaco model ref. CW2112, but that had “TAG Heuer” on the dial- this is the only Silver Monaco that has just “Heuer” on the dial.
These have been rarely seen on the second-hand market- so if you do see one, its not a fake and is certainly very collectible.
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The Heuer Monaco disappeared from the catalogues around 1975 having been only a modest success due to its unusual shape. TAG Heuer hadn’t shown a lot of interest in the heritage of the Heuer collection until the late 1990′s when it decided to press ahead with a “Re-edition” collection made up of the Carrera and the Monaco. These were a success and were followed by others in the classic range including new models that looked like they might be old Heuer’s but weren’t (Carrera GMT and Monza).
Following the takeover by LVMH, TAG continued with the Classic series, but decided to drop the “Heuer” only branding and revert to TAG Heuer. The Autavia and Targa Florio (again, not truly a re-edition) followed.
Today, The Carrera and Monaco are a key part of the TAG Heuer model range and the company has embraced rather than rejected its heritage, with the Monaco and Carrera names being used on the new technology developed (V4 Monaco, Carrera Calibre 360).
There is often confusion around the black Monaco’s- and what is a re-edition and what is not. Below are the variants of the black TAG Heuer Monaco issued since 1997 (although other colours and limited editions have also been issued).
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Bamfords have been customising Rolex watches for a while and are now offering to customise a PVD Monaco for about £5000. If nothing else they have produced an entertaining website where you can play designer. Here are a few efforts- “Stealth”, “Gulf” and “Rosso”- I’ll stick to the original thanks!
Try here: http://www.bamfordwatchdepartment.com/monaco.cfm
Cheers Arno
