FIRST IMPRESSIONS: TAG Heuer Carrera Calibre 16 Fangio Limited Edition

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And the new watches keep on coming! Here we have the new 2019 Fangio Limited Edition Carrera Calibre 16 in a 41mm case, and... I think it's rather nice! None of the past Fangio limited editions have really rocked my world if I'm completely honest, but this one looks quite stunning. I love the contrast between the white subdials and the black background and that 'Argentinian' blue really sets it all off nicely.

If you're going to have a stripe on a watch dial then this is how it should be, nice and thick so it doesn't look like an 'apology' for a stripe (see the latest Max Verstappen quartz Formula 1), it still affects the symmetry of the dial layout, sure. But at least it looks like it was always meant to be there.

I really like the fixed ceramic bezel on this one as well, not quite so sure about the Fangio 'signature' but it's not massively offending me. I feel like it could have been done in simple text rather than this way, which is quite hard to read and a little bit messy... but then a Fangio fan may well disagree. On the back we have the expected engraved tribute caseback that has graced many Carreras over the years.

It's a simple thing, but the colour coded stitching on the perforated leather strap finishes this limited edition off nicely and really ties it in with the dial. Speaking of the dial, thankfully there's no sign of the dreaded 'faux' aged lume, in fact I'm beginning to wonder if that concept has been quietly forgotten as I can't remember the last new TAG Heuer that utilised it. I guess it works better on some models than others, but anything with a white dial or subdial is a no-no as far as I'm concerned.

You never really can tell just from renders and photographs, but this certainly looks the part on paper. I'm hoping to visit the London boutique next week so maybe I will get to see this there. My only reservation is that the other recent 41mm Carreras I've tried on have been awfully thick and wear rather 'tall' on the wrist.