You know, it really doesn't seem five minutes since TAG Heuer announced they were teaming up with Porsche, and already we're four years into this partnership with ten references on the books! How did that happen? Oh well...never mind. The great thing is that because all these watches have been scored by the COCO council previously we have all the info we need to do a top ten countdown!
#10. CBU2010.FT6267 (6.1/10)
We start our countdown with one of the two 2024 models. This was the launch model for the new Carrera Extreme Sports range and this particular example was designed with reference to the 963 racing car and limited to (you guessed it) 963 pieces. I got to see this recently and it's definitely my favourite of the new Carrera Extreme Sports models, but I'm still not truly sold on this design and apparently the Council isn't overly enthused either. Still, at least we can be sure that every single watch on the list scored at least a 6/10, so that's a pretty solid start.
#9. CBN2045.FC8316 (6.2/10)
In a way I'm surprised that this wasn't the bottom of the list, because I think it's fair to say that it's a bit of an 'acquired' taste. The side-of-case engraving is very cool, but there's just something about this combination of rose gold and red alligator strap that doesn't quite gel somehow. Of course it didn't help that it came out at the same time in steel with an iconic blue and white colour scheme, a watch that a lot of people had very favourable views on.
I did get to try one of these on at the TAG Heuer boutique in Sheffield and I thought it was nice enough, but to be honest my abiding memory of it was that I thought the strap looked worn just from sitting in the shop, which is not great when you're spending that kind of money...
#8. CBS5012.FC6571 (6.3/10)
This is the most recent of the Porsche collaborations, surely marked down largely because of the excessive price by the council (this was of course before all the tourbillons rocketed on January the 6th...or 'Tourbillon Monday' as I will henceforth be calling it!), because this one is pretty cool with lots of very nice detailing. Yes this is extremely expensive, but it is nice to see TAG Heuer making a watch that looks genuinely unique rather than just tweaking a standard model and sticking 'Porsche' branding on it. This one actually did quite well in the end of year voting, rising from a 5.9 to a 6.3/10.
#7. CBN2A1H.FC6512 (6.4/10)
When this one came out I rather liked it, reminding me as it did a little of my beloved black and yellow Grand Carrera Caliper*. However in hindsight, i.e. after the release of the super cool CBN2A1M, it feels kinda like they didn't go quite mad enough with the yellow paint. Some might say that's a positive, but I say if you're going to go for a colour scheme like this then go bold or go home. It just feels like the balance of yellow on the watch and strap is a little off to me.
*Umm, I don't actually own one, I just really, really want one.
#6 CBN2A1M.FC6526 (6.7/10)
Speaking of which, here it is... what a stunner this one is, the only watch on this list that I would really like to own and one I seriously thought about buying at one point. Ultimately I decided against it, partly because I'm simply not that bothered about 'Porsches'... but every time I've seen it in a store it makes me wonder. I figure this will probably hold it's value better than the other 'Carrera Sports' I really want to add to my collection and so it will probably have to remain a wistful dream... ah well.
#4= CBN2A1F.BA0643 & FC6492 (6.8/10)
An unusual situation this, as I can't ever remember any other watch scoring equally on a bracelet and a strap, but honestly I think it's clear that both options have merit and it would be cool to be able to switch between the two. This was the very first TAG Heuer x Porsche collab watch and while there was actually a fair bit of whining when it was announced (due to the first TAG Heuer x Porsche being a beefy 44mm Carrera and not a nice vintage 39mm, naturally) it still scored pretty well by the time it came to the end of the year. These are starting to become a bit more affordable now and while I do love the DLC versions, this is probably more wearable every day and still looks pretty cool with it's 'asphalt' effect dial.
#3 CBS2040.FC8318 (7.3/10)
I actually rather like the Chronosprint glassbox models, partly because at 42mm they don't look silly on my wrist like the 39mm models do, but also because the movement is undoubtedly a fun thing to play with. I mean, yes... practically it's pretty useless, but I think it would keep me entertained for a little while at least. Again the rose gold (with it's high price) didn't fare as well as the steel version, but it still did okay being paired with a more elegant brown strap this time.
#2 CBS2011.FC6529 (7.5/10)
So we come to our top two and I'm guessing the Porsche fans out there probably knew what the winner was going to be before we even started. But before we get to that, here is the other 42mm glassbox Chronosprint, this time in the more affordable steel case. Personally I think the silver case and grey dial is a much better combination than the rose gold and beige, but each to their own. This is probably my favourite modern glassbox Carrera, although that's not really saying a tremendous amount as I've never been a big fan of any of them.
#1 CBN2016.EB0275 (7.8/10)
Were you surprised? I thought not... this one was greeted with rapturous applause on release and it's easy to see why. Unfortunately I never got to see this one in person (as it it sold out rather quickly), but every photograph I've seen has led me to believe that I would like it.
This one was supplied with a bracelet alongside a blue and white 'Porsche' branded fabric strap, hence the EB code in the part number. This colour scheme is perfect and immediately brings to mind those legendary 2.7 Porsche Carreras... it's just a pity TAG Heuer didn't produce a few more as I'm sure they could have sold more than 500 pieces.
It's worth noting that the CBN2016 was the second highest scoring watch of 2022 and it also tied with the orange dial 43mm Aquaracer (WBP201F) for second place in the 'Watch of the Year' voting. In doing this it secured 4 votes from the notoriously difficult to please Council of Considered Opinion (a creditable 14% of the total).
The winner that year was the limited edition 'Watches of Switzerland Carrera Elegant Panda', which itself only took six votes, so all in all it was a very good showing.
Well, there we have it. Ten watches in four years is going some, I'm sure you'll agree. Presumably there will be at least two more in 2025, I wonder if we'll get anything that isn't a Carrera? Perhaps a Porsche x Gulf x TAG Heuer Monaco Calibre 11 perhaps?
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