What do a German car brand, a Swiss watchmaker and a Mexican road race all have in common? And no, this isn’t the start of a dad joke.
The Carrera Panamericana was a border-to-border Mexican road race similar to Italy’s famous Mille Miglia. While the race only existed for four years from 1950 to 1954, it left an indelible legacy in the world of motorsports thanks to its intense and dangerous character.
Porsche, then still a fledgling sports car manufacturer, saw a number of successes in the Carrera Panamericana, inspiring them to use the ‘Carrera’ name to denote their top-spec models and engines, a practice that continues to this day. The race was also the inspiration for TAG Heuer’s famous Carrera line of racing chronographs, similarly one of the brand’s most iconic and desirable collections.
While the worlds of TAG Heuer and Porsche have often intersected over the years – usually in the context of motorsports – it’s only in 2021 that these two like-minded brands have finally, formally, cemented their relationship. Not only are the two brands collaborating on motorsports ventures such as the TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team, but they’ve just announced a brand new timepiece to celebrate the occasion: the TAG Heuer Carrera Porsche Chronograph Special Edition 44mm.
This handsome new rendition of the classic Carrera watch perfectly blends the DNA of both brands. These days, the luxury world is filled with sometimes incongruous collaborations – take Jacob & Co.’s incredibly ugly watch collaboration with Supreme or Dolce & Gabbana making toasters with SMEG. Porsche and TAG Heuer, however, actually make sense together (hell, it might just be the perfect brand collaboration) and this new watch might just be one of the most handsome Carreras of all time.
The Carrera Porsche Chronograph is immediately recognisable thanks to the slick Porsche logo on its bezel. The dial treatment is particularly unique, too, evoking the asphalt of a racetrack, as is the watch’s rotor, which has been redesigned to pay homage to the classic Porsche steering wheel design. Another unique feature of the watch is the substitution of typical 1-12 hour markers for seconds indicators, which further underscores its sports car inspiration.
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Classic Porsche colours of red, black, and grey – which also recall historic Heuer models – are incorporated throughout the watch. It’s a tasteful colour scheme that reflects the history of both brands perfectly but remains low-key and dressy. Plenty of Super-LumiNova means that despite this watch’s dark colour palette it’s perfectly legible even at night… Or during a cheeky tunnel run. Wind down those windows, baby!
Like other Carrera and Monaco models released recently, the Carrera Porsche Chronograph utilises TAG Heuer’s celebrated in-house Calibre Heuer 02 manufacture movement, which boasts an impressive 80-hour power reserve. The watch is also available with TAG Heuer’s recently redesigned steel bracelet, but the real winner strap-wise is the exclusive leather strap that comes with this model, which features a unique split design that brings to mind a Porsche’s interior.
Whether you want it on your wrist for your next Porsche meet or you’re just a fan of both brands, the TAG Heuer Carrera Porsche Chronograph is one good-looking piece of wrist candy and is sure to be one of 2021’s hottest collaborations. Find out more at TAG Heuer’s online boutique.