According to the information on the TAG Heuer website, the Monza was originally positioned as a budget alternative to the Carrera, costing just $219 compared with the Carrera, Jarama and Cortina models, which were in the $345 to $365 range. $219 in 1977 equates to about $1200 today. So of course this latest carbon cased Monza costs a frankly hilarious £11300... because what are you, poor?
Okay, so leaving aside the comical price tag, is this a nice watch? Well, kind of. My first positive is that I really like the white hands and markers. One of my biggest criticisms of the otherwise very lovely 40th Anniversary Monza was the 'fauxtina' and I haven't changed my mind on that. Frankly it's abominable and shouldn't be allowed, but some people do like it and I must admit sometimes it works (my friend Rich has an LHD Pelagos and it works there because the white on the black and blue models is so white that it desperately needs toning down) but on the Monza 40th red, white and black became red, black and... pale brown. 😞
So that's a good start, right! Yes, and while the perforated strap looks oddly shiny and cheap, and like it somehow doesn't quite go with the rest of the watch at least it doesn't have dirty great holes cut out of it, so that's another plus. I also like the dial, on the whole... but I HATE the date window, Not only do I hate the shape of it but it also looks squashed up against the minute track.
And while we're on the subject of the date. You might notice something a little strange about it... this watch has a skeleton date wheel. As far as I know this is the first time TAG Heuer have ever used a skeleton date wheel on a solid dialed watch, and maybe it's their intention to do this with every watch in the future, after all, what could be more avant garde? But actually you can't help feeling that all this really is is a Monza skeleton with a solid dial. Which probably explains the poor positioning of the date window. If it had a date wheel they could have moved it 0.5mm to the right and it would have looked much better.
Which then begs the question why is it so much cheaper? Both carbon, both the same movement, I can't see the actual costs being that much different really. And then when you take into account that Watchfinder currently have a Monza skeleton for £7500, you start to wonder where this one will land from it's £11,300 starting point. £6000? At that price it would make a much more appealing package.
Some have taken issue with the three lines of text next to the date window, but it honestly doesn't bother me. Better something's filling that empty space than nothing and it doesn't annoy me anything like as much as that weird date window. But still it didn't take long for the THF Forum to come up with alternative designs, which of course switched out the TAG Heuer logo for the classic Heuer one, dispensed with the text, added a red cap to the top pusher and corrected the shape of the date window.
A future Bamford Special?
Honestly they looked pretty great, and switching out the marbled carbon case for a DLC titanium one was a pretty dramatic improvement. Those guys should be doing consulting work for TAG Heuer if you ask me (although I'm not entirely sure about that red date wheel).
The other thing that bothers me about this watch, at least in the renders, is that it looks like you could drive a bus between the end of the strap and the case. I really don't like that at all. I think I'm so used to nicely fitting straps with shaped ends now that that just looks really crappy. A bit like the 'printed' hour markers on an £11k watch... hmm.
So yeah, it's not bad, but I really don't like the case at all and the price is just way off. Sure it's a flyback, but we had a flyback Autavia for like £6k not that long ago. It just seems like they're plucking prices out of thin air at this point. I guess it makes a lot more sense than the prices for the Rattrapante Monacos at least.
Oh well, I'm sure the more classically minded Council of Considered Opinion will give this a more positive review and I wouldn't be surprised if this didn't feature in the conversation when it comes to the C.O.C.O. Watch of the Year.
7.5/10: "Anniversary editions are important so I'm glad TAG Heuer issued this Monza for its 50th."
7/10: "Too thick and too expensive for me to seriously consider buying one. It's a nice looking Monza, but I'd get the vintage original or the 40th anniversary over this one. I think TAG Heuer has had a better track record with all their 40th anniversary heritage pieces vs 50th. I.e. 40th Carrera > 50th Carrera, 40th Monaco > any of the five 50th Monacos, and 40th Monza > 50th Monza."
7/10: "It's ok, nice looking watch. I'm not a fan of carbon cases though. Since it harks back to the 70's, I'd have preferred something a bit different and historically more relevant like a magnesium alloy case. Price is... what we expect these days."
8/10: "I’m not a huge fan of carbon cases either. That said, looking back it’s worth remembering that the original 1976 Monza was also black. So in a way this limited carbon version continues that dark look in a modern form. I particularly like the red accents and the red column wheel visible through the caseback. Overall, this combination of black and red gives the watch a strong character. If I already owned an original 1976 or the 2016 anniversary model, I’d definitely want to be one of the 500 people who get this new piece."
5/10: "At first glance, it looks nice; however, the more I examine it, the more things I do not like stick out to me. The skeleton date wheel looks like a leftover part, and I'm indifferent to the carbon case. The price, as is often the case, is ambitious."
8/10: "Little disappointed with with the unnecessary text near rhe date window. But all in all its a lovely watch. One of the best so far in 2026."
8/10: "Not a huge fan of cushion cases, but this is a nice, cohesive design and the forged carbon is an interesting touch. A bit on the expensive side, though."
6/10: "WOTY? Well it’s been a shitty year so far. This is the most I have dialed back a rating after initially falling for a release. I quite like this, the combination of carbon and the retro inspiration makes a great blend, much more so than the skeleton Monza that I just couldn’t fall for. But as with everything released in the last couple of years, it’s hard to see past the pricing. Initially it was a seven, but I just deducted a point for the skeleton date!"
9.5/10: "Wow - Home run 9.5/10 - I like the whole package!"
7/10: "I quite like it, and it's nice to see Tag honour their heritage well and at the same time introduce something new. But I'd rather save the £11k and purchase a lovely original 70s Monza. I'd have plenty of spare change I suspect."
6.5/10: "Viewed as a standalone watch, I like this Monza 50th Anniversary CR5092… the problem arises when comparing it to its predecessor, the 40th Anniversary CR2080 (a winner at the 2016 GPHG), which is an unavoidable comparison. While both have the same diameter and case design, I prefer the 40th Anniversary's look (black titanium grade 5 with a double finish: polished and brushed), its Heuer logo, the layout and sunray finish of its dial, its strap, its reduced thickness (13.5mm vs. 15.2mm), its launch price (€4,950 in 2016 vs. €13,350 for the new model)… and although I don’t like to see in the new CR5092 the same skeleton date wheel as in the 2023 Monza Flyback Skeleton CR5090 (with which it also shares the carbon case) the truth is that I like the 50th Anniversary version much more than the Monza Flyback Skeleton (I gave a 3/10 to that one), so the CR5092 is a 6.5/10 for me."
7/10: "It’s ok but I’d prefer a uniform titanium finished case, price is more than I would really pay for a TH, if in the market for a Monza I’d just buy a standard model."
6/10: "I love the Monza and I want to love this one but it's hard. I'm not overly keen on the date window on the left hand side, let alone the window itself. The carbon case feels forced to justify the high price and yes okay it's a flyback movement, but still the price to me feels a little bit over the top, but maybe its just me. Give me the 40th anniversary Monza over this any day of the week."
5/10: "I don't get excited about the exotic carbon. The nod to the present with this choice does not work for me. It is to dominant."
6/10: "That is very cool! As always, pricing is a joke but kudos to LVMH if they can find 500 idiots willing to pay what is being asked here. Strap looks a bit cheap too or like it doesn't really match the watch style."
9/10: "I’m ignoring the price! This watch is absolutely awesome!!! Fantastic movement: chronometer-certified, flyback. The design is top-notch. Pulsometer and tachymeter scales. Beautiful carbon case. Proper individual numbering. The downsides for me are the printed indices. Sure, they fit the vintage look, but at this price point they could have added some nice applied indices. Also, only 100m of water resistance - that almost makes me afraid to wear the watch in the rain. 😅 What I really love is that they’re keeping the Monza design alive, with only a very limited number of variations. That’s a refreshing contrast to the countless “limited” editions in some of the other collections."
6/10: "I'm not keen on the 'marbling / textured' effect on the case as I think it would have been better as just black. Apart from that it's OK."
9/10: "I do love a Monza, I just don’t like the price tag."
7/10: "Big fan of Carbon and a big fan of the Monza too…but this sadly lacking as it’s just too safe after the great Flyback Monza skeleton. Not terrible but not standing out either, which is a shame at this price point."
