FIRST IMPRESSIONS: TAG Heuer Carrera Calibre TH20-00 'Australian' Limited Edition Chronograph

 

"Am I missing something?" asked my watch enthusiast (and COCO member) wife. "Is there supposed to be something here that I can't see, like a koala or a kangaroo or something?"

"Errr, no," I replied.

"Oh, so what's 'Australian' about this watch exactly?"

Here we go... I thought.

"Ah yes, well as it happens I can help you there, because I read an article about the watch on the Time & Tide website. So the design is basically a mash up of the vintage Ronnie Peterson Carrera and the Jo Siffert Autavia. The stripe on the dial is from the Carrera and the blue hands and black subdials are from the Autavia."

"Who are Ronnie Peterson and Jo Siffert?"

"They were Grand Prix drivers."

"Australian Grand Prix drivers?"

"Nope, Ronnie Peterson was Swedish and Jo Siffert was Swiss, they are both dead unfortunately. But when they were alive they were mates with Jack Heuer and Jo Siffert in particular used to buy watches from Jack and sell them to people in the pitlane, which helped create the bond between Heuer and F1."

"Okay... but what does that have to do with Australia?"

"I'm glad you asked, because again, according to the Time & Tide article this watch 'represents the bond of friendship'. And as everyone knows friendship is a big thing for Australians."

"I'm not really seeing the connection. Is friendship uniquely Australian?"

Nicolas Biebuyck - Heritage Director and author of 'Carrera: The Race Never Stops'

"No of course not... it's a little bit tenuous isn't it. See what happened was that Nicholas Biebuyck (Heritage Director of TAG Heuer) went to Australia to a Heuer collectors summit and they wanted to do an 'Australian' Carrera. So TAG asked them what they wanted to do and apparently they suggested things to do with opals, pearls, beaches and obvious landmarks like Ayres Rock, but to be honest none of those sound that great do they and any reference to mining is probably problematic, so eventually (I imagine) someone said 'why don't we mash up these two old watches' and naturally everybody thought that was a brilliant idea."

"So they basically picked two random watches from the past... neither of which has anything to do with Australia?"

"Well, yes. Pretty much."

"Right. So again, where is the Australia here?"

"Wow, you're really labouring this point aren't you."

"I'm just saying... if it's the 'Australian' Carrera I feel like it should have something recognisably 'Australian' about it. I mean, remember that 'Mexican' Carrera, it had a 'Mexican' wrestling mask on it didn't it?"

"Yes it did. But the key thing here (that I think you're missing) is that it was 'Australian watch enthusiasts' who chose which watches to be mashed-up."

My wife looked singularly unimpressed and we sat in a heavy silence for a moment, until I proffered...

"Have you not considered the fact that the Australian flag is mainly blue and this has blue chrono hands?"

She looked at me with a face that suggested she was questioning her life choices.

"What, that's it? Blue chrono hands make it 'Australian'."

"Hey, don't shoot the messenger." 

"But blue is also French?"

"Apparently, yes. And sometimes Japanese... until recently. And Nordic too."

"Couldn't they have put the Sydney Opera House on the back or something."

"They could have."

"Or an outline of Australia even?"

"They thought about it, at one point they were going to put it on the rotor."

"But they didn't."

"No."

"They just mashed up two old watches that they've probably re-issued before."

"Pretty much. Yes."

"Have they done them before?"

"Yes. The Ronnie Peterson watch was a very limited edition of about ten pieces I think and the Jo Siffert Autavia has been done twice, once in 2003 and once in 2019. It was the 'Calibre 11' website limited edition.... and there we do actually stumble on an Australian connection, because David Chalmers who used to run Calibre 11 is Australian!"

David Chalmers (left) with Jean-Claude Biver and that bloke from Time & Tide.

"So it's a tribute to David Chalmers?"

"Oh, no, I don't think so... but the 'David Chalmers' should definitely be its nickname. That's hilarious."

"Why?" 

"Never mind. I can't really be bothered to explain. But I'd love it if he had a tribute watch seeing as he arranged for us to go to the TAG Heuer manufacture."

"Yes, that's true. What a legend!"

Another pause for reflection...

"Doesn't Australia have any Grand Prix drivers?"

"Mmm, yes, quite a few actually... Alan Jones, he was world champion in 1980, Jack Brabham, Mark Webber and Oscar Piastri of course.. but he's sponsored by Richard Mille at the moment."

"I see."

"Do you?"

"Not really... anyway, it's alright... I'm giving it a six. If it had a koala on it it would have got an 8."

"That's fine."

Okay well that was my wife's take on it, and I think we can all agree she has a valid point. Yes, it's true that this isn't by any means the first watch TAG Heuer have produced for a particular country that has no specific reference to that country on it. The Nordic edition was just blue, the French editions are also generally blue and neither had a flag or the Eiffel tower on the back. 

And as far as the design goes it really doesn't matter to me, as long as the watch looks nice (and this one does), and I probably wouldn't have commented further had it not been for the Time & Tide article trumpeting the 'participation' of the Australian Heuer enthusiasts. I have nothing against these people of course, but is this really anything TAG Heuer couldn't have come up with on their own?

Maybe, but I don't for a moment believe that 'friendship' was the 'inspiration' for this watch. I suspect the design came first and the 'story' was manufactured after the fact, conveniently shoe-horning the 'mates are important to Aussies' nonsense in afterwards. 

But are we surprised? If you ask a group of Heuer collectors to design a watch what are you going to get? Or rather how are you going to get them all to agree on something? By creating a watch that draws heavily from the watches they (collectively) already like. And when you think about it like that then it's a fairly low risk strategy for TAG Heuer because they surely know that the group as a whole would never agree on a kookie watch with a kangaroo rotor and a funnel-web spider subdial.

Ultimately all that matters to me is how it looks, and I think it looks pretty good. Definitely one of the best looking glassboxes yet, but sadly the fact that it is a glassbox Carrera (and a 39mm one at that) means there's a limit to how much I can score it. So I will be giving it a 7. I like the Jo Siffert part of it (I liked both the previous Siffert Autavia re-issues actually, I really like the colour combination), but I'm not so sure about the Ronnie Peterson part of the design... 

Maybe if it had a koala on it I would have given it an 8 too. 🤣

Is this 75 piece limited edition the COCO Watch of the Year? Maybe; it's certainly got some good scores... and it's fresh in the memory, unlike sooo many others. I guess we'll have to see. And it won't be long because this is the last release of 2025 (as far as I'm concerned anyway, anything else will have to count as 2026).

10/10: "This one looks amazing."

7/10: "The contrasting chrono hands are good, the stripe on the face gives interest, yep."

6.5/10: "It doesn't say Australia to me, more like Argentina but strangely i quite like it, regardless."

9/10: "Great looking watch."

3/10: "Just take the current glassbox outside and shoot it already."

6/10: "I love the glass box but what’s with white stripe…just doing these for the sake of it now haha."

7/10: "The render looks better than the real thing."

9/10: "I have been concerned about the thick bezel ring of Glass Box Carrera. I want it to be thinner there. That would give it a more vintage look. But this watch is innocent. This watch must be a legendary piece, a modern interpretation of Jo Siffert Autavia and Ronnie Peterson reprints."

7/10: "Despite being a new glassbox, I quite like this version."

8/10: "Definitely one of the nicest looking glassboxes."

7.5/10: "Nice colours. Definitely one of the better new glassboxes. Maybe second behind the Skipper. The stripe is interesting - can't quite work out whether I like it or not."

4/10: "As with most glassboxes, the design is a total mess and looking at this thing makes me feel very uncomfortable."

6/10: "Am I missing the Australian reference? It's fine, nothing special really but the blue details look good."

9/10: "Peak heritage!"

9/10: "In the spirit of being honest, I cannot stand the current glassbox design…but this is rather stunning I have to be completely honest. Not in my top 3 for the year, but it came close, which was unexpected for me."

8/10: "Nice looking watch."

8/10: "I'm not a big fan of the second gen glassbox, still not enamoured with the curved outer flange and the sub-hand height from the dial is awkward. All that said, this is otherwise a nice looker. I'm not seeing an obvious Australian connection here. I assume it's just limited to that market, I'm thankful it doesn't have an engraving of the Ashes urn on the back! The dial is nice, quite retro but classy. The blue sub and centre seconds hand work well. It's as nice as a glassbox gets for me, clean, crisp and legible. A decent score of 8/10."

7/10: "One of the nicer releases from the current glassbox Carreras."

FIRST IMPRESSIONS: TAG Heuer Carrera Calibre TH20-00 'Fragment' Limited Edition Chronograph

 

You know, some posts are a lot easier to write than others. This one I've already written twice and I'm still not happy with it... so here I am three hours before the publishing deadline trying yet again to finish it. Given how short of time I am, instead of tying myself in knots trying to be clever or sarcastic or whatever, I think instead I'm just going to be brutally honest. 

And okay, maybe a little sarcastic... (to be honest it's going to be hard not to be).

TLDR: I really don't like this watch. 

Don't get me wrong, it's not the worst watch I've ever seen, it's not even the worst TAG Heuer of 2025; that 'privilege' undoubtedly belongs to the godawful 'Osaka Expo' Carrera. But in a way it feels worse. Because while that watch is intrinsically flawed in its 'design', it at least feels kind of 'honest' in its 'execution'... whereas this one genuinely feels like a case of the Emperor's new clothes.

I wasn't a great fan of the first 'Fragment', but you wouldn't really expect me to be would you? 39mm glassbox Carreras on bund straps aren't for me and that's fine (I don't expect every watch TAG Heuer make to appeal to me, me and only me), but I didn't hate it either. I think I gave it a 6 or something - which is pretty much what I probably gave to the majority of the first generation glassbox Carreras. 

By contrast I quite liked the second 'Fragment', it was impactful and different and genuinely interesting... and it amused me that Heueristas loved it because it looked like an old Autavia but at the same time hated it because it said 'Formula 1' on the back. 🤣 

Yes I know, I'm a horrible human being.

This one, well... it just seems like a lazy rehash of the first one but worse. And okay the silver 'not actually a bezel but we don't know what else to call it' is a point of difference, but in real life photos it looks pretty awful and has all the finesse of a white-walled tyre.

As for the dial... yes, minimalism! Take everything off the dial, everything that makes it a Swiss watch, leaving something akin to a Michael Kors fashion watch, with chronograph subdials that are unreadable. What a genius this guy is. What a visionary! Sure, but if this was a microbrand claiming to disrupt the watch industry with their 'minimalist' masterpiece, we'd all be laughing at it.

And given the lack of finishing on the dial, no snailing on the subdials, no hour batons... how does this come out about £1000 more than a regular glassbox Carrera? Oh, is it because the centre link on the bracelet is black PVD? Or is it because Fujiwara's fans are quite happy to pay £180 for a T-shirt, so probably more than willing to pay 'whatever' for one of the divine one's 'masterpieces'?

Yeah, sorry, but I really do not like this watch. At all. 

And frankly I'm not going to waste another second of my time talking about it, so now over to you, the righteous members of the C.O.C.O. Fill your boots!

3/10: "I don't really like it. Would have to see more real photos I think to properly judge it, but from what I've seen, the white chapter ring makes it looks like there's a massive milky ring, and it makes the dial look smaller. And I'm not a fan of the matt black subdials on matt black dial. More miss than hit."

2/10: "Not a fan of the new glassbox models (beginning with the bezel under glass which looks even more weird on this one). Likewise, the centre link, in black, looks odd to me (just a pinstripe of black). I wonder whether the subdial hands will "disappear" at certain angles. Finally, price is once again bonkers."

3/10: "I’ve previously loved the fragment design, maybe this works well in the metal but it just looks dull in the photos."

7/10: "I’m sure this will do well in Japan market! I do like his design cues for the Carrera."

5/10: "I'd never heard of Fragment as a brand. As an ageing guy who has spent his life in jeans and leather jackets, I'm very unlikely to cross paths with "urban streetwear". I've read some very pretentious, arty, hyperbole about this watch, really seeking to justify that it doesn't look anything like as good as the watch it pays homage to. In no way can I see any improvement. Reissues I can appreciate, reinventions of a classic usually fail. What is the point unless it is better than original? Design classics are classics for a good reason.

Reviewing it as a watch minus the hype, it's just "OK". It doesn't invoke any strong feelings in me at all. I don't like the height of the subdial hands sitting way above the dials. I don't like the lack of numbers on the subdials either. It needs the hash marks at 5,10,15 etc to be much bolder than they are for that work.The height of the sub hands will mean there is visual error when trying to read the subdials from anything other than directly above. The tiny hour marks don't work for me either, just looks unfinished. A middling score for a middling watch, so a 5.0 from me."

3/10: "Conflicting design." 

4.5/10: "I saw this one in C de F a few weeks ago. (I thought it was a prototype 🥴) Not a bad design per se, except for the much-mentioned milky tachy bezel."

3/10: "It's one of the worst new glassbox releases, if not the worst. The white ring just sticks out like a sore thumb. The simple & clean all black face works on the Fragment F1, but here it's too bland and gets overpowered by the white ring."

4/10: "4/10 for the Milky Ring King. I would much prefer it with a black tachy bezel."

4.5/10: "I really liked his Formula 1 but not this. The bezel is off putting and I'm not keen on the bracelet option."

7/10: "I like it it’s just a bit plain."

6/10: "Like a broken record, but I am not a modern glassbox fan at all. This is one of the better ones though, so I scored it a 5, but giving it an extra 1 as they went top the effort of actually making it a proper limited edition by individually numbering it on the case back. It’s not a true limited edition if it say ONE OF on the back!"

4/10: "Hmm, a bit bland really. Yet again the back of the case is more interesting than the dial."

7/10: "I like the white, but the text should have been a deep black for contrast."

3/10: "I like the tachy ring but overall this looks a lot more like a microbrand 'homage' to a Carrera than something TAG would actually make."

8/10: "I really like these minimalist designs. The Fragment F1 models are available on eBay at very good prices, shipped from Japan, and I keep being tempted by them. But I’m generally skeptical when it comes to buying things on eBay. I also really like this new version. It’s even more radically minimalist than the first Carrera x Fragment. I still struggle with the logo, though, because it evokes associations with the SS symbol used by the Nazis."

4/10: "It looks like they added a bracelet to a miniature whitewall tire on a black rim."

6/10: "The last Fragment Carrera was a home run, this could have been too if not for the big white sidewall."

7/10: "Surprisingly i don't like this one that much...i think the numbering on the bezel should be black colour."

5/10: "If this had been all black, it would have been a success. In it's current form it looks odd."

5/10: "I have a slight complaint about this watch's design. I feel the bezel ring's markings should have been rendered in black. I imagine the intention was to emphasise its monochrome aesthetic, but somehow the silver ring appears to float, which I don't find particularly pleasing. Furthermore, the large number of limited editions is another point of dissatisfaction."

ON THE WRIST: TAG Heuer Carrera Extreme Sports GMT Chrono & Lilac 36mm and 41mm Day/Date Carreras

 

TAG Heuer Boutique / Meadowhall, Sheffield 31st October 2025

A few weeks ago I stopped in at the Meadowhall boutique on the way to a concert in Sheffield, it's always nice to visit as the staff are great and there's a surprising amount of pieces in there that you don't find in AD's or most other TAG Heuer boutiques that I've been in! Sometimes things show up ages after you've forgotten they've come out and sometimes they surprise you with something that you only found out about a few days beforehand. One such example being the new Carrera Extreme Sports GMT in green and black pictured below.

I'm not gonna lie, this photograph makes it look way more legible than it really is - although to be fair, that could be partly because of the boutique lighting. And yeah I get that it doesn't even look that legible in this photo; in person it's a hot mess! But even so, I could probably live with that if the overall aesthetic was working, but sadly on this occasion it just doesn't. 

The green elements are surprisingly dark, which might suit some people who would prefer to avoid the 'Spritish' black/green combo found on the latest 42mm Aquaracers. 

Funny, I'd kind of forgotten about those new Aquaracers... which is hardly a good sign.

In fact the whole watch feels rather subdued, except for the huge shiny spaghetti of metal parts on the dial which shine bright like a diamond. 

Weird. 😑

I've seen the new Carrera Day/Dates in windows several times, but never been moved enough to try one on. As I was heading out the door I thought, you know... maybe I should, because after all I am the 'TAG Heuer Enthusiast' and you never know, I might try it on and be blown away.

Sadly, the watch looks just as uninspiring on my wrist as it did in the cabinet, and even a side by side comparison with an old model didn't actually help. I used to quite like the old model, and always thought that one day I might pick on up on the pre-owned market for a good price. To be honest the new watch does make the old watch look quite dated and dull, but that still didn't make it interesting for me. But at least now I know not to bother looking for an older model....

I don't know, something about it just SCREAMS mall watch, or perhaps even fashion watch... which is obviously way worse. And I don't think I've seen a single owner wrist-shot of one of these either... 

Last but not least, at 36mm this date/time only Carrera is way too small for my uber-manly wrist, but I thought I would try it on if only because I know my good friend Jimbo Dollare$ would love to see it on my hairy arm. After the rich pink 'Barbie' Carrera, this one is almost 'subtle' and definitely more feminine, but still wearable if you have the right size wrist. 

I still think these Carreras work better without the diamonds, honestly. I think the colours are enough on their own and work better with the polished steel indices, but you know, some people just love diamonds and who am I to argue with that?

In my opinion it would be good if TAG Heuer made them in both configurations, but on the other hand if you really want the lilac dial then I guess you have to stump up the extra £900 or whatever it is. You pays your money and you takes your choice, eh!

VIDEO: TAG Heuer Carrera Extreme Sports Chronograph by Hourstriker

 

FIRST IMPRESSIONS: TAG Heuer Formula 1 Solargraph & Calibre 16 Chronograph 'Qatar GP' Limited Edition

The 2025 Qatar Grand Prix turned out to be rather 'dramatic' didn't it? And almost farcical in the way it set up Formula 1 for a three way finale in Abu Dhabi. Honestly, if this season was a film we'd all be tutting and saying it was 'far-fetched' wouldn't we? So perhaps it's only fitting that TAG Heuer released a pair of (slightly) 'dramatic' looking new Formula 1's in the days leading up to the race, following the pattern that's prevailed throughout the year of 'associating' new F1 Solargraphs with Grand Prix without going as far as explicitly naming them for the races. Maybe Liberty Media wanted even more money for that? 🤣

So really what we have here is nothing particularly dramatic or new, but rather a variation on an existing theme and with both still drawing inspiration from a 'classic' Formula 1 model, the 377.513. I think these black-cased F1 Solargraphs look by far the best and I think the bright pink provides a nice contrast to the overall darkness. Both of these models are limited to 1000 pieces and both carry the text 'One of 1000' on the backplate; which doesn't overly bother me, but is sure to annoy some members of the Council... and you'll sometimes see them point out that they've given an extra point when a watch is properly numbered.

I think the pink and black colour scheme is great, but I'm interested to see if TAG Heuer bring out a black Solargraph with lime green highlights (to match the Calibre 16 they've already released) or indeed a black with blue highlights. No doubt those have already been earmarked for 2026 'Grand Prix' editions. I wonder if they will launch all* next year's F1 Solargraphs at 'Watches and Wonders' like they did this year, or will they just drop them on us throughout the year?

*Not quite 'all' as it turned out I guess!

Not even Christmas and I'm already mulling over the 2026 release schedule... 🤣 

Okay, so the 44mm Calibre 16 is currently priced at £4350, while the 38mm Solargraph is £1650... I say currently because I'm hearing whispers about a pretty horrendous price rise coming in January. So if these pink beauties rock your boat then you might want to think about securing yours before the ripples from the US tariffs take effect. Yeah, yeah, Trump reduced the tariffs to 15%, I know.... but it seems like Switzerland already set their new prices based on 39% and they ain't about to climb down now. Which is sad, because it's just making the possibility of buying any brand new TAG Heuer ever again seem like a more and more remote possibility. At least for me...

Okay, so now (for what seems like the 300th time this year already) it's time to hand these over to the 'Council of Considered Opinion' and see what they have to say this time.

Solargraph 8.5/10, Chronograph 7/10: "No shock here, but I love the colour scheme on these two! Not as much of a fan of the retro F1’s but this is the best one so far. This is also the best of the new style F1 Chrono’s too."

Solargraph 6.5/10, Chronograph 7.5: "I actually like The look of the new Calibre 16 F1 watches along with the hot pink, black aesthetic. This is lovely. A lot to like with the Solargraph too, the pink and black compliment each other well, shame about the shiny crown still..."

Solargraph 7/10, Chronograph 7/10: "In my opinion the pink Solargraph is one of the most successful (to date) of the 're-imagined' vintage F1 designs although the polished steel crown is jarring (black would have been better). No idea why it needs to be limited. The colourway also works well on the Chronograph and the black and pink crown looks great."

Solargraph 8/10, Chronograph 5/10: "I love the solargraph! Unfortunately the chrono is a 5/10 for me because I just don’t like the case shape."

Solargraph 8/10, Chronograph 8/10: "I really think that the new Formula 1 automatic chronograph is a  good looking watch."

Solargraph 8.5/10, Chronograph 8/10: "I have ordered the Solargraph, the other one is nice too."

Solargraph 7.5/10, Chronograph 6.5/10: "Nothing if not aren't prolific aren't they! Solargraph, quite a nice colourway. Obviously very reminiscent of the old 377.513 which is no bad thing. I'm not wholly sold on the Solargraph, prefer the originals balance aesthetically but this is a nice enough watch and very wearable. The Calibre 16 looks ok and the colours work well. Heavy on price at £4350 for what is a 7750 chrono. Looks like an aluminium bezel insert which is very disappointing at that price."

Solargraph 5/10, Chronograph 5.5/10: " 'Speed' on the chronograph's tachymeter continues to look silly, and I would score it higher otherwise. As is, 5/10."

Solargraph 4/10, Chronograph 6/10: "Not pink enough."

Solargraph 7/10, Chronograph 8/10: "I agree, if you're gonna go pink, then fυcking go all in pink!"

Solargraph 8/10, Chronograph 6/10: "I really like the jazzy pink on the Solargraph. The other one is let down  as always by the pointless block text on the bezel. I assume the next will be some different narcotic…."

Solargraph 8/10, Chronograph 8.5/10: "I like these - I'm not usually a fan of pink but these both are pretty cool. Wouldn't be a daily, but a fun weekend watch. Well done!"

Solargraph 8/10, Chronograph 7/10: "Nice, nice. Better in the Solargraph in my view. And it looks better than the original because of the black case."

Solargraph 7/10, Chronograph 7/10: "The pink-on-black colourway is striking. Won't be surprised if my wife wants the solargraph model."

Solargraph 8/10, Chronograph 7/10: "The automatic F1 looks good. The pink comes out strong. This is the opposite of the solar. Here the pink is somewhat orange/red. I think the pink is more subtle here (although this may be the pictures)."

Solargraph 8.25/10, Chronograph 7.75/10: "I like the F1 Solargraph models more in general, so it gets an 8.25/10."

FIRST IMPRESSIONS: TAG Heuer Carrera MEIA & UK Limited Edition Chronographs

 

As you may have noticed, I recently revamped the 'Part Number' index page with photo banners for each model instead of text. This not only makes the page look much nicer but is also easier to click on if you are viewing the blog on a phone (which I know a lot of you do). I also tidied up the text on the individual pages and increased the font size to make it easier to read. 

As I was doing this it occurred to me that I could write some posts about region specific 'Limited Editions' and the first one that I thought of was 'Middle East' L/Es. You might be surprised how many there have been, starting way back in the 1990s with a 'Saudi Arabian Equestrian Foundation' Formula 1 chronograph and most recently with these new glassbox Carreras. I will most likely post this in January, so look out for that, but for now let's investigate these new models further.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS: TAG Heuer Monaco Rattrapante 'Air 1' Limited Edition

 

I'll admit I haven't exactly been complimentary about the previous Monaco Rattrapantes. Obviously I haven't seen one in person and it's entirely possible that they are one of those watches that just doesn't photograph well (much like the Grand Carrera), but until now I've found them spectacularly unappealing, despite several different colour combinations being released. But now TAG Heuer have given us this new $150,000 limited edition (30pcs) and if nothing else they've certainly improved it's kerb appeal.

But it's more than just a new colour combo (and black and gold is almost always a winner), because this one has been redesigned to mimic the look of an imaginary supercar, taking design cues from said car including all the grilles and shapes you'd expect to find on a Lamborghini cum Ferrari cum Aston Martin.