FIRST IMPRESSIONS: TAG Heuer Carrera Heuer 02T Singapore/Malaysia Limited Edition

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TAG Heuer (and watch companies in general) are getting some flak in the forums for not only the number of limited editions they are releasing, but also the lack of imagination that they are putting into them - case in point being the new Tokyo, New York and Oxford Street Carreras, all of which are identical at first glance save for a different place name on the back display glass (actually there are some other differences in materials, but you'd have to look carefully to spot them). So it's nice to so a new Limited Edition that really does look genuinely different - whether you like it or not!

This Heuer 02T Tourbillon is a limited edition of just ten pieces (so a PROPER limited edition then) for the Singapore and Malaysian market, and you've got to take your hat off to TAG here for coming up with something genuinely different and unique.

I'm not 100% sure if I love it or not to be honest, but I really admire the brand for having some imagination (especially in light of the rather unimaginative Senna Tourbillon released the other day) and doing something that I've never seen done on a watch case before. It kind of brings to my mind the amazing artwork 'Vega 200' by the French-Hungarian Op-Artist 'Victor Vasarely', albeit there is no actual optical illusion at play here, just a series of finely engraved circles.

This 45mm, COSC certified, titanium Carrera is priced at S$27,000 (£15,000) which seems a pretty good price point for such a unique and limited piece, although it's kind of a pity that such an unusual finish isn't (presumably) going to be more widely available. Still, there's nothing to say this won't re-appear somewhere else, I guess, if the feedback is positive enough. And who knows, maybe it will inspire the brand to be a little more adventurous when it comes to their limited editions?

While there are some people who genuinely take against limited editions of any kind, I think the majority of people find them interesting as long as they are... 'interesting' in and of themselves. There is of course the matter of 'taste', which is where some of the Bamford pieces fall on their faces somewhat, but then again isn't it better to have something divisive than something everyone agrees is dull and uninspired? 

Red flashes are a simple and well worn route to creating 'special' pieces, but this particular piece shows how much more exciting limited editions could be if only some chances were taken. I guess it's easier to do that when you're talking about just ten pieces, I just hope they sell really well and give the brand confidence to go out on a limb more and live up to their 'Techinques d'Avant Garde' mission statement.