New Racing-Inspired TAG Heuer Carrera Chronographs In 42mm
With these new racing-inspired TAG Heuer Carrera Chronographs, the brand is proving that the new Glassbox editions aren’t the only pieces worth a gander. These pieces may “only” be new dial variants, but I had to look twice to see if there wasn’t more at work. These are really good!
A duo of racing-inspired Carrera Chronographs may sound redundant because, after all, the Carrera is the racing watch. Still, one look at these will reveal the automotive connection. TAG Heuer is releasing some really nice pieces this year, and that includes dial updates.
The Carrera Calibre 02 chronographs
If we head back to September 2020 (let’s not actually do that), TAG Heuer released the new 42mm Carrera Calibre 02 chronographs. These were and still are really nice watches with clean dials. At 14.5mm thick and with a lug-to-lug of 48.2mm, they’re not small, but the proportions are certainly on the wearable side. Plus, with 100m water resistance, they defeat the complaint of those who have concerns about a 30m-rated chronograph. Also, the watches use the in-house Calibre 02 automatic movement with 80 hours of power reserve and a beloved column wheel. I liked these when I wrote that article, but I felt that the sub-dial at 6 o’clock was a bit of an afterthought.
The new racing-inspired Carrera Chronographs
Perhaps someone at TAG Heuer was listening because, three years later, some new variants on the 42mm case are here, and they look great. The new Carrera Chronographs are now for sale, and they bring some real excitement to their respective dials. Available in either a black or blue version with a corresponding smooth leather strap, the watches feature an orange gradient track meant to evoke the speedometer of a sports car. That may sound a bit too on the nose, but I think they look great without being cheesy.
Furthermore, the watches have red hands for the 12-hour and 30-minute totalizers along with the central chronograph hand. Most importantly, these new Carrera Chronographs go a long way towards addressing the there/not there running seconds sub-dial at 6 o’clock. Now the small hashes on this register alternate between white and orange. The effect gives the whole area more purpose and uses the large space on the dial far more effectively than on other versions. Likewise, the orange numerals on the inner bezel also make the watch look a lot tighter and more composed. It’s a great result on an existing platform in my view!
Final thoughts and pricing
The 42mm TAG Heuer Carrera Chronographs will retail for €5,800 and contain all the same specs as the models that debuted in 2020. Perhaps these aren’t as new as the Glassbox models that also debuted this week, but they are attractive and should breathe additional life into a popular model with the TAG Heuer catalog.
For additional information, visit the official TAG Heuer site.
