Hands-On With The Titanium TAG Heuer Monaco Chronograph Racing Green
I have a weird, ambivalent relationship with the TAG Heuer Monaco. While I am a great fan of its design and legacy, I am not a fan of the actual watch on my wrist. Or at least, I wasn’t. That’s why I was a little apprehensive when going into this hands-on review. The Monaco’s square shape and the fairly boxy case have never won me over. Having said that, I do greatly enjoy the design as an object. Add the famous Steve McQueen story, and you will have a watch that demands respect from a historical point of view. That’s also why I am always open to trying a new Monaco. Keeping an open mind can lead to pleasant surprises, and that’s exactly what happened with this green and titanium Monaco.
When Nacho put the new titanium TAG Heuer Monaco on my desk, I had my usual reaction. It’s a great watch, and I love what the brand did with the colors. As a design object, I loved it immediately. But we’re not talking about art that you display at your house. Not that you couldn’t do that with practically intended objects. Plenty of people do, and I even have an old typewriter at home that’s a perfect example. But that day I put watches on display, I will need a little tap on the shoulder and a “What are you doing?!” That’s where the practicality of a watch comes in. And with the Monaco, plenty of people understand it’s not an easy watch to wear. But I was ready to be proven wrong!
The modern TAG Heuer Monaco collection
First of all, I couldn’t believe the official case dimensions. The Monaco collection has a 39mm case size as standard. This new model also has a 39mm case in Grade 2 titanium, but it looks deceivingly bigger. Lex and I couldn’t believe that it it was a sub-40mm case, so out came the calipers, only for them to confirm that was is indeed a 39 × 39mm square. But once that astonishment settled, it was time to take the watch for a spin.
As you would expect, the watch comes with a story related to racing. The brand came up with its version of a Racing Green Monaco for this new release. I wasn’t aware of that when we had the watches in as they arrived before the press info did. While I greatly appreciate the traditional British racing green liveries, I also didn’t mind not knowing that. I appreciated it for its color rather than its context. And indeed, this new version just looks really good!
The specs of the TAG Heuer Monaco Chronograph Racing Green
Let’s go over some details first. As already mentioned, the watch has a square 39mm Grade 2 titanium case with a 47.4mm lug-to-lug and a 14.35mm thickness. The characteristic case is water resistant to 100 meters and features a sandblasted finish. I like the combination of the slightly yellowish hue of the titanium with the finish.
It fits the watch really well. Another impressive sight is a side view of the case with its sharp angles and box-shaped sapphire crystal. As I said, it’s a great design object that is wonderful to behold.
The watch has a silver sunray-brushed dial that suits the look really well. I love that the designers didn’t choose a green dial. It would have made the watch look much more like a traditional dark-dialed Monaco, so I’m glad they steered away from that. Two green square opaline sub-dials contrast the silver dial nicely, and a date window sits at 6 o’clock. I like that TAG Heuer chose its Calibre 11 for this release. Unlike the Heuer 02 that powers most Monaco models these days, Calibre 11 doesn’t have an awkward sub-seconds counter at 6 o’clock.
The dial has some super nice details
The polished, rhodium-plated, and applied indices sit outside the minute track. If you look closely, you see that the indices are placed horizontally. It’s a brilliant, quirky detail that I love. On the minute track, you will also find light green, almost turquoise luminous dots that add extra color. The rhodium-plated hour and minute hands feature white tips and are filled with Super-LumiNova that lights up blue in the dark, in line with the luminous dots. The centrally mounted chronograph hand is bright yellow, adding a nice bit of zing to the dial. As you can see, the dial features the vintage Heuer logo, just like the modern remake of the iconic blue Monaco that is available. It’s a lovely detail that hints back at early models and the watch’s rich history.
Another detail connecting this watch to its racing past is the green racing-style leather strap with a bright yellow lining. The strap is a pleasure to wear and comes with a comfortable brushed titanium folding clasp with the vintage Heuer logo.
Thanks to the clamp system, it is easy to size the strap precisely to your wrist. You have to be a bit careful to gently put the leather strap in position because the tolerances are tight. While that is a good thing overall, a little caution goes a long way. After that, it’s smooth sailing.
The TAG Heuer Calibre 11
As mentioned, TAG Heuer equips the square-shaped case with its Calibre 11. This automatic movement is based on the Sellita SW300-1 with an added Dubois-Dépraz chronograph module. The movement operates at 28,800vph and has a power reserve of 40 hours. It is visible through the sapphire window on the back and, as you can see, is finished neatly. Thanks to the modular architecture, the movement allows for the Monaco’s traditional setup with the crown on the left side of the case and the two chronograph pushers on the right side.
It might feel a bit strange at first to have to set the time and date with the crown on the let side, but you’ll quickly get used to it. Other than that, the pushers provide some nice, firm clicks when operated. Once activated, it’s nice to see the yellow chronograph hand hover over the silver dial.
The bright yellow hand contrasts nicely with all the elements on the dial, making it easy to read. That’s something that stands out immediately for the entire dial. The placement of the different elements is logical, and the contrast ensures good legibility.
Wearing the TAG Heuer Monaco Chronograph Racing Green
This brings me to actually wearing the watch. That’s how this Racing Green version completely took me by surprise. As I said, I love the TAG Heuer Monaco’s design, but I have never been the biggest fan of the square shape on my wrist. Let me start by saying that I love this model’s looks. It is my favorite Monaco I have seen in the last few years, so that’s a huge plus. And once on the wrist, it becomes a super stylish timepiece. I love that it is not as loud as the classic blue Monaco, and I much prefer this Racing Green version because it looks fantastic.
I also adore the details on the dial, especially the horizontal hour markers. They give the watch a quirky but super stylish look. Add the wonderful colors, and there is a lot to love here. I am still not the biggest fan of the square case shape because it feels unnatural to me. But I began warming up to the watch a lot after a day or so. That was largely due to the combination of the titanium case material and silver-colored dial. They create a relatively subdued image that doesn’t pop off the wrist. Consequently, this version lacks the overwhelming presence of the classic blue model that accentuates the case shape a lot more.
Final thoughts on the titanium TAG Heuer Monaco Chronograph Racing Green
I must admit that I was nothing short of impressed by the new TAG Heuer Monaco Racing Green. It removed many of my rusty preconceived notions about the Monaco. I enjoyed every second of wearing the watch. The titanium case makes it lightweight and super easy to wear. Furthermore, British racing green is implemented tastefully, and the movement celebrates the original Monaco’s caliber through its name and crown/pusher layout.
Overall, I have only good things to say about this release, which will be available as a limited run of 1,000 pieces. Each will have a price of €9,150, which, though more expensive than the steel Heuer 02-powered Monaco models, is cheaper than other titanium ones. Importantly for me, this new TAG Heuer Monaco Chronograph Racing Green will forever be the Monaco that changed my perception of the watch.
It is rather special that such a thing happened after all this time. It made this one of my favorite hands-on experiences of the year, and that says a lot. I think that TAG Heuer created a release that will sell out in no time. British racing green’s story will undoubtedly win people over if the looks and materials do not. The last two did it for me, making the TAG Heuer Monaco Racing Green one of the most pleasantly surprising releases of 2024.
You can learn more about the Monaco collection on TAG Heuer’s website. Feel free to let us know what you think of this most recent addition to it in the comments.
