Showing posts with label Gulf. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Gulf. Show all posts

Wednesday, 4 June 2025

FIRST IMPRESSIONS: TAG Heuer Monaco 'Gulf' Limited Edition Calibre 11 Chronograph



There's always quite a lot of excitement when TAG Heuer announce a new 'Gulf' branded Monaco and even I (someone completely untouched by the romance of Le Mans, Steve McQueen, etc) am not immune to the lure of the striped, square dial. However I did find the most recent regular 'Gulf' model a little disappointing (for me it was perhaps the least interesting of all the 'Gulf' models we've seen to date) so it's nice to see a really good one this time around, even if it is a limited edition.

For the 2025 edition we've gone right back to the start with another white dial Monaco embellished with red and blue stripes (as seen on Steve McQueen's race suit in the film Le Mans). It's funny but every time we get a new Gulf Monaco it always descends into a debate about how they never use the right shade of pale blue (with most agreeing that the 2018 limited edition of 50 pieces was the most accurate from that point of view), but thankfully here we don't have to worry about that, phew!

Monday, 3 July 2023

ON THE WRIST: TAG Heuer Formula 1 'Gulf' Special Edition Quartz Chronograph

CAZ101AT.BA0842

TAG Heuer Boutique / Spitalfields, London 15th April 2023

This post has been kicked into the long grass more times than I care to mention, hence why I'm now writing about a watch I tried on in April (you can blame TAG Heuer's relentless release schedule for that... still lots more 'First Impressions' posts to come, I just can't keep up with them!) and yes, of course you could be forgiven for thinking that perhaps I wasn't excited enough to make this a priority? Well maybe there's a little bit of truth to that, but to be fair I wasn't disappointed by the new 43mm Gulf Formula 1 quartz chronograph either.

Wednesday, 19 April 2023

FIRST IMPRESSIONS: TAG Heuer Formula 1 'Gulf' Special Edition Quartz Chronograph

 
CAZ101AT.BA0842

It seems like rumours of a new, updated Formula 1 have been swirling around for months if not years now, but to me it seems pretty clear that the Formula 1 has been refreshed with a new look (if not a new case) and so I fully expect this new style of Formula 1 to be around for a while yet. Personally I quite like it; I'll admit I found the 'Red Bull' a bit busy on release, but overall the new watches definitely seem a bit more 'on it' (although to be clear I'm definitely not talking about the dreadful tri-colour F1s here) and for me one which was hanging around and in desperate need of a makeover was the Gulf F1 edition.

Tuesday, 2 August 2022

ON THE WRIST: TAG Heuer Monaco Heuer 02 'Gulf Edition' Chronograph

 
CBL2115.FC6494

TAG Heuer Boutique / Meadowall, Sheffield 18th June 2022

It's been a little while since I've had a Heuer 02 Monaco on my wrist, or any Monaco for that matter. In fact I think the last time I actually tried one on was February 2020 and that was a 37mm model with a white Mother of Pearl dial, a white strap and diamonds adorning the case. The last time I had a 'proper' Monaco on my wrist was December 2019, so it's perhaps not surprising that in the past two and a half years I had overinflated the size of the watch in my mind a bit. For sure it's not small, but neither is it an unwearable monster on my 7.1/2" wrist. In fact on re-acquaintance it seemed altogether quite reasonable!

And so we come to the new Gulf Monaco, a watch that received many positive words from the 'Council of Considered Opinion' on release, much to my surprise - seeing that it was replacing a Heuer branded Gulf, and one of the better ones the company has produced to date.

Sunday, 5 June 2022

SPOTLIGHT ON: TAG Heuer's 2022 Watch Releases (Year to Date)

 

Can you believe we're already approaching the middle of 2022? Bah... it will be Christmas again before we know it! With that in mind I thought I would take this opportunity to share with you a little recap of the TAG Heuer watch releases to date (spoiler, it's very Aquaracer heavy!).

Overall we've seen some interesting pieces and very little in the way of genuine duds, but I'm sure there's plenty more to come in the second half of the year and don't forget the watches will all be scored again come December, before we announce the C.O.C.O. Council 'Watch of the Year'.

So then, here we have all the watches released so far in 2022 and as a bonus I've included links to the original 'First Impressions' posts (which of course include the invaluable thoughts of the C.O.C.O. Council).

Thursday, 21 April 2022

FIRST IMPRESSIONS: TAG Heuer Monaco Heuer 02 'Gulf' Special Edition Chronograph

 
CBL2115.FC6494

A cynical watch enthusiast might conclude that watch companies are spectacularly adept at never quite giving the public what they actually want. One such example would be the 'panda-dial' 39mm heritage Carrera that the THF Forum has been crying out for forever... but there are many others throughout the watch world, not just in the TAG Heuer universe. But it's not without good reason, because ultimately if you do give the customer exactly what they want a) what is their motivation to come back for more, and b) where do you go from there?

Thursday, 31 March 2022

SPOTLIGHT ON: A Quick Look at the New Releases from Watches and Wonders 2022

 

Rest assured there will be individual 'First Impressions' posts for all the new TAG Heuer watches once I've had a bit more time to digest the finer details (and of course complete with the usual insights and scores from the COCO Council), but today I thought I would just give a very brief overview of the TAG Heuer Watches & Wonders 2022 releases, plus one rather surprising Rolex...!

CBN2A1H.FC6512

Sunday, 14 February 2021

FEATURE: The C.O.C.O. Council Rates the TAG Heuer Gulf Watches


I hope you enjoyed Jim Dollares (and friends) 'Gulf Mania' posts last week, I can't say I agree with everything he said, but I do agree that the CAW211T is probably the best Gulf Monaco TAG Heuer have given us yet. But the watch community is notoriously opinionated and it got me wondering what the 'Council of Considered Opinion' would make of the Gulf Monacos and indeed all of the Gulf Special Editions. So I sent them a copy of Jim's Gulf montage and asked them to score each watch out of ten. Twenty-one members of the council were enlisted, with nineteen submitting replies by the deadline, did they support Jim's claims or not? Let's find out...


#8. WAH1013.BA0860 - 5.7/10

No prizes for guessing that this humble quartz Formula 1 Gulf Edition would come out at the bottom of this poll. Despite that, these present an affordable(ish) entry route into the world of Gulf watches and remain popular with watch enthusiasts to this day. This was available on a steel bracelet or a fairly nasty rubber strap (actually the strap is fine, it's the clasp that is nasty) and gives you a small seconds, skeletonised hands, great lume and a grand date! What's not to like?


#7. CW2118.FC6207 - 6.0/10

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the white dial CW2118 fared the worst of the Monacos in this particular poll, but still managed a respectable score of 6/10. The eternal question remains of whether this was a proper 'Gulf' watch or not, but perhaps for the Steve McQueen fan this is the ultimate 'not actually a Gulf' Monaco' since it ties in with the classic photo of him in his race suit.


#6. CW211A.FC6228 - 6.4/10

This was the second, or first 'proper' Gulf Monaco depending on your point of view. I quite like that is has black subdials, but presumably this was not a popular design feature as ever since the subdials have been in contrasting colours such as white or silver. Note how narrow the Gulf stripes are here, it won't last...


#5. CAW2113.FC6250 - 6.4/10

Just edging ahead by dint of an actual score of 6.45 versus the CW211A's 6.41, we now see the introduction of the contrasting subdials. But, of course, there is still one little problem with this one that's holding it back in the eyes of cognoscenti... can you guess what it is? Hint: it's not that the stripes are still too narrow, though we'll come to that soon enough.


#4. CAL5110.FC6265 - 6.7/10

For the divisive Monaco 24, fourth was probably the highest one could reasonably expect, especially given the 'old school conservationists' that inhabit the C.O.C.O. This was the most expensive of all Gulf branded TAG Heuer watches with an original list price of £10,000+; nowadays you would need to find somewhere in the region of £6-7000 to put this on your wrist and while I like it, I think if I had that kind of money to spend I would be looking elsewhere. A point of interest, the CAL5110 was the main inspiration for the 'Dark Oil Lord' concept watch.


#3. CAZ101N.FC8243 - 7.2/10

Rightly proposed by Mr Dollares as the 'Gulf Prince', the current quartz Formula 1 Gulf SE garnered a very decent score 7.2/10, in the process beating out all other 'TAG Heuer' branded Gulf pieces - quite an achievement when you think about it. Personally I'm not keen on the very short, slightly weird blue strap (or the black pushers and crown actually) but help is at hand as this watch is now being sold by several retailers with both the leather strap and a BA0842 steel bracelet for £1625.


#2. CAW211R.FC6401 - 7.4/10

And so rather predictably it came down to a head to head between the two 'Heuer' branded Monacos, the regular CAW211R that you can buy in any branch of Goldsmiths and the CAW211T that you can't buy anywhere and even if you could it would cost you an arm and a leg because they only made 50. Perhaps not surprisingly, the super limited CAW211T came out on top, leaving the CAW211R to languish in second place. For all Jim's rage, this is still a nice watch, but there's no getting away from the fact that that blue isn't the 'classic' pale blue of the Porsche 917s of old. Gulf 'Queen' anyone?


#1. CAW211T.FC6440 - 7.8/10

So there it is, the Gulf King is indeed the 'Gulf King' after all; though having said that, one member of the council scored it as low as 3/10! The CAW211T was the only watch to get more than one maximum score though, in fact it picked up three 10s, making it the clear winner by any metric. Clearly though with a score of 7.8 there still seems to be room for improvement, at least in the twisted minds of the C.O.C.O. (the red highlights seem to be a particular sticking point) and get a load of those stripes, if they get any wider they won't even need to worry about a background colour! 


Right, I think that absolutely concludes our coverage of the Gulf branded TAG Heuers for the time being!


GULF MANIA: PART ONE

GULF MANIA: PART TWO

GULF MANIA: PART THREE

Friday, 12 February 2021

FEATURE: Gulf Mania - Part Three: 'Crowning the Best Two Gulf Watches'

 

In this third and final part of the 'Gulf Mania' series, Jim Dollares crowns the 'King' and 'Prince' of Gulf Heuer watches. If you missed the previous parts of the series you can either scroll down to yesterday and the day before or click the links below which will take you straight there.

Gulf Mania - Part One 'Le Mans' 50th Anniversary   

Gulf Mania - Part Two 'The Gulf Maniac'   


Before I pass you over to Jim for the concluding episode of the 'Gulf Mania', I'd like to take this opportunity to thank Mspeedster, Yuki, Darryn and Ara for their valuable contributions to this series, it is much appreciated and I hope you enjoy seeing your work on the blog.

Rob


Photo by Yuki Nohara (@24Snowy24 on Instagram)

Initially I was thinking that I should pick the top three TAG Heuer Gulf watches. But let’s be honest, two of them are so much better and in a league of their own compared to the rest. Hence, this became a top two instead. They shall be known to the world as the Gulf King and the Gulf Prince.



The Gulf King - the 50 pcs limited edition Gulf Monaco (CAW211T)

There have been a number of Gulf releases from TAG Heuer during the years but none of them come close to being as perfect as the 50 pieces limited edition released in 2018. In comparison to many limited releases of late, this one is a proper limited edition with individual numbering on the caseback. My good friend Darryn Brown (@heuer.holic on Instagram) owns one of these and he was kind to provide me with a bunch of amazing photos to share with you.


“you want to hold it, touch it and spend time with it”

TAG Heuer announced this release as a 50 years celebration of the first victory for a Gulf sponsored car in the famous race of Le Mans. A bit of an odd celebration indeed and I know that watch brands tend to make a fuss about all kinds of silly celebrations and anniversaries. However, that doesn’t change the fact that this is an incredible Monaco, with perfect Gulf coloured stripes on top of a rich dark blue metallic dial it is difficult to take your eyes of this beauty. Some would even say that looking at it wouldn’t be enough, you want to hold it, touch it and spend time with it. Make it your special one. (sweet Jesus - Ed)


Not unique for this Gulf Monaco but still as fascinating, get up close with the dial and you will see the very cool printing of the Gulf stripes. They create a sort of depth and appear almost three dimensional being printed on top of the dark sun burst blue dial. This is probably my favourite feature of this dial.

Another detail I love about this Gulf Monaco are the white sub dials. They create a nice contrast and look superb, compared to the standard Gulf Monaco special edition (CAW211R) which has silver looking sub dials which seem out of place on that dial. 


The watch has a display caseback, just as the standard calibre 11 Monaco (CAW211P) but as you can see here about half of the glass is covered by this “Gulf first victory 50th anniversary” printing. It looks kind of cool and adds another detail which makes this very limited edition even more special.


“this is what the standard production Gulf Monaco 'should' have been”

It is likely to believe that most Gulf enthusiasts look at this watch and think to themselves that this is what the standard production Gulf Monaco should have been. Wishing deeply that TAG Heuer should have made something similar to this for their special edition available worldwide. One thing is for sure though, with only 50 pieces made it will be very challenging to find one on the used market. I am sure that the lucky 50 owners out there will hold on to this one for a very, very long time.

Photo by: Mspeedster

The Gulf Prince - the special edition Gulf Formula 1 (CAZ101N)

Almost as good and perfect, but in a smaller package with quartz engine, this 2018 release deserves to be crowned Gulf Prince. This one is kind of a rare phenomenon; it is the second Gulf Formula 1 model ever produced by TAG Heuer. Its predecessor was the WAH1013 from 2011 and both models are shown side by side in the photo below. 

Photo by Yuki Nohara (@24Snowy24 on Instagram)

It is difficult to understand the reasoning from TAG Heuer when in the same year of 2018 they released the terrible Monaco CAW211R with incorrect Gulf colours and this perfectly branded Formula 1 model. Who decided that the affordable Formula 1 should please the fans with accurate Gulf branding but not the Monaco? The Formula 1 implements the perfect shade of Gulf coloured stripes on top of a matte blue dial and an orange chronograph seconds hand. A sporty, affordable and almost elegant alternative for Gulf fans who do not wish to spend Monaco levels of money on a watch. Or just prefer the accuracy and convenience of owning a quartz movement for that matter.

Photo by: Mspeedster

A unique feature of this Gulf timepiece is that there is no Gulf logo on the dial. I sure am glad that this is the case, imagine if TAG would have ruined the dial by squeezing it into one of the sub dials. It would have been a disaster on similar level as the Indy 500 watches from TAG Heuer. Turning this watch over and you will at least be pleased to see that there is a special Gulf logo engraving on the caseback. Good call to save an already busy dial from being ruined!

Unlike the Gulf King, there are a couple of details I would’ve changed with the Formula 1 model. The very attractive strap is unfortunately terribly uncomfortable to wear and owners are forced to exchange it for something better, like a proper racing leather strap. The other little details I would change would be the black crown and pushers. They look a little out of place and don’t really go well with the other design elements of this watch. However, these are small flaws that don’t change how much I adore this watch.

Photo by: Mspeedster

The next Gulf watch?

In 2021 it will be three years since TAG Heuer released the current line-up of Gulf watches. I can’t help but hope that the 50th anniversary of the movie Le Mans will be reason for TAG Heuer to release something new and spectacular; it must be right? If the “50th anniversary of the first victory in the Le Mans race for a Gulf branded car” was reason enough to release the Gulf King, for sure the 50th anniversary of the legendary movie must be a crazy good reason for a new special edition!

Jim Dollares 
@jimdollares on Instagram


Thursday, 11 February 2021

FEATURE: Gulf Mania - Part Two: 'The Gulf Maniac'

 

Continuing our three part series in which Jim Dollares celebrates the history of TAG Heuer and Gulf Oil in his own very special way...


I asked Michael, the watch community’s number one Gulf maniac (known in the watch community as ‘Mspeedster’) to share with us the story about why he loves everything related to Gulf. Michael has an impressive collection of Gulf items, Gulf model cars, TAG Heuer watches and Steve McQueen figurines and he is the ideal source for understanding why Gulf is such a legendary brand loved by enthusiasts all over the world. With that said, I now hand over to Michael and his fascinating story!

Photo by: Mspeedster


According to the watch community’s number 1 Gulf maniac, this is what makes Gulf so special

2021, it's been 50 years since Steve McQueen's classic movie Le Mans was released. The famous John Wyer Automotive Engineering Porsche 917s were forever immortalized, in their unforgettable Gulf Racing duck egg blue and orange livery. And McQueen's watch? The Heuer Monaco, which too became a thing of legend.

It's also been 50 years since this Gulf Racing enthusiast, some might call "maniac", first became fascinated by these cars and racing livery. The seeds were planted at a very early age. But it wasn't the movie, it was actually a book I received as a gift in 1971 which was the genesis. I was a young boy, having developed a passion for cars & auto racing since the age of five. The book was Automotive Quarterly Vol. 9 No. 2, it was all about Porsche. It had a chapter devoted to the Gulf Racing Porsches, with many photos and featured beautiful paintings of the Targa Florio winning Gulf Porsche 908 and the Gulf Porsche 917 at Le Mans. It left a lasting impression! I still have this book in my library.


Photo's by: Mspeedster

A few years later, the movie Le Mans would make its network television debut. My parents thought the movie was boring and wanted to change the channel, but I was simply mesmerized by the battle between Porsche v Ferrari! I showed them the book and said: "See, it's these cars! I want to see how the movie ends". That Christmas, I received my first slot car racing set and wouldn't you know it, it featured the Gulf Racing Porsche 917 (and some Ferrari). I still have that old slot car set too, it sits covered in dust in my parent's basement.

Photo by: Mspeedster


“I had no clue that the Monaco ever existed, let alone worn by Steve McQueen”

Thus, my infatuation with Gulf Porsche & Le Mans began. But like many things during one's childhood, it had become a distant memory by the time I reached adulthood. My interest in watches wouldn't start until I was a young adult, by then, Heuer had become TAG Heuer. But I had no clue that the Monaco ever existed, let alone worn by Steve McQueen, until TAG Heuer re-released the Monaco in the late 90's. 

At that time, my favourite watch was my S/el ana-digi, as worn by my racing hero Ayrton Senna. I wasn't interested in the re-released Monaco (ref. CS2110) at all, it looked nothing like the one in the movie to me. However, when TAG Heuer created their Monaco "Gulf Edition" watches and also the 40th Anniversary Monaco, it was love at first sight! I finally got my Monaco Gulf in 2011, just in time to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the movie Le Mans. It was then that my mania for everything Gulf Racing was reignited, and my childhood memories came rushing back!!!

Photo by: Mspeedster

I suppose I'm now the resident Gulf "maniac" on the Calibre11 Forum, another thing of legend perhaps? If you're not a fan of Gulf Racing, you might wonder what's all the fuss? Well, for me, it's the perfect trifecta of Man, Machine and Watch! The man, Steve McQueen - too cool for school. His machine, the legendary dominant Porsche 917. His watch, the Monaco - it's hip to be square!

Photo by: Mspeedster

Moreover, Gulf's unique light blue & orange livery is just so eye catching, whether it be on the Ford GT40, Porsche 917, Mirage GR8 or modern day race cars. Gulf mania knows no end!

Mspeedster

A big thank you to Michael for sharing his story. Come back tomorrow for the third and final part of the TAG Heuer and Gulf mania series where I will be crowning the King and Prince of Gulf watches.


PART ONE

PART THREE

Wednesday, 10 February 2021

FEATURE: Gulf Mania - Part One: 'Le Mans' 50th Anniversary


Today we start a three part series that will be posted today, tomorrow and Friday and celebrates the history of TAG Heuer and Gulf Oil. This has been put together by our new contributor Jim Dollares and features input from several members of the Calibre 11 forum. Take it away JD. 


2021 will be the 50th anniversary of the famous movie Le Mans. Readers of this blog will be very familiar with the history of the Heuer Monaco and Steve McQueen so the first part of the TAG Heuer and Gulf mania will not cover this. What will be done though, is a celebration of the 50th anniversary by focusing on something very special to many watch fans. Timepieces and motorsports have gone hand in hand for a long time and a brand that has played a major role in both these worlds is Gulf. With its famous and eye-catching blue and orange colour scheme it is easy even for non-motorsport enthusiasts to understand the appeal of the Gulf livery. Join me in a series of articles where I talk about the watches, the Gulf brand and enjoy a ton of photos to drool all over.

Photo by Yuki Nohara (@24Snowy24 on Instagram)

THE WATCHES

These days it feels like TAG Heuer Gulf watches have always been around. Among TAG Heuer enthusiasts today Gulf branded watches are a natural thing, but the fact is that the first Gulf watch was introduced by TAG Heuer as late as 2005. Some might even argue that it was in 2007 since the first one in 2005 did not have the actual Gulf logo or the Gulf colours. The dial was bright white with a red Gulf shaped logo saying ‘Monaco’ instead of Gulf and reason for these design choices were of course that TAG, at that time, did not have the licensing rights for the Gulf branding. 

Since then we have seen a total of eight Gulf themed TAG Heuer watches; two Formula 1s and six Monacos. Looking at these watches all at once makes it very clear to me that two of them should be crowned the best Gulf watches (yet). TAG Heuer achieved two definite homeruns with two releases from 2018, first of all the CAW211T Monaco and secondly the CAZ101N Formula 1. Both of these shown at the bottom to the right of the Gulf montage below. 

The eight TAG Heuer Gulf watches released to date.


“a bad design choice that makes no sense for Gulf fans across the world”

When looking at these eight timepieces side by side you could play a game of “which one does not fit in?”. Sure, the white CW2118 stands out but is still a cool looking design on its own. However, in my opinion there is one Gulf edition that stands out in a very negative way. I am obviously referring to the current Gulf Monaco special edition (CAW211R) which, for some incomprehensible reason does not have the correct Gulf colour scheme. 

If you’re a Gulf fan, this major flaw with the Gulf colours being completely wrong will make your eyes bleed of horror when looking at the dial. It will forever be a great mystery how someone in TAG Heuer’s design department could sign off on such a bad design choice that makes no sense for Gulf fans across the world.

The CAW211R with its terrible colour scheme. Photo by ablogtowatch.com


“based on our exquisite taste, we know how the perfect Gulf Monacos should look”

This is how TAG Heuer should celebrate the Le Mans anniversary!

If there is something I love doing, it is daydreaming about watches. Some say that men think about sex 10 times every minute. This is of course not true, real men think about watches all the time. The current TAG Heuer Monaco Gulf special edition (CAW211R) could have been perfect but since TAG Heuer managed to completely screw it up I had to step in and show you what could be done to achieve perfection. On this mission I teamed up with chief editor Rob, Ara (@heuerrooklyn on Instagram) and Michael (known as ‘Mspeedster’ in the watch community). Based on our exquisite taste we know how the perfect Gulf Monacos should look and to that end we designed three brand new TAG Heuer Monaco Gulf special edition concept watches.


#1 TAG Heuer Monaco Heuer02 Gulf special edition concept 

In the watch world today, there is nothing hotter than a silver dial. This proper Gulf Monaco with its timeless sunburst silver dial and Gulf livery delivers a perfect combination of pure motorsport heritage with modern TAG Heuer design.

Design concept by Jim & digital design by Ara.


#2 TAG Heuer Monaco Heuer02 Gulf special edition ‘The Dark Oil Lord’ concept

It doesn’t get more bad-ass than this! Black DLC case with a black patterned dial further strengthening the contrast of the vibrant Gulf colours. Ladies and gentlemen, The Dark Oil Lord has arrived.

Design concept by Rob & digital design by Ara.


#3 TAG Heuer Monaco Calibre11 Le Mans 50th anniversary limited edition concept

True to the heritage of the Monaco from the movie, this limited edition is based on the calibre 11 case with the modern calibre 11 movement and crown on the left side of the case. With a Gulf blue matte 
dial divided by a dominant orange stripe in the middle, this watch fully embraces the colour scheme we know and love. Enthusiasts will be pleased to see Bell & Siffert's famous number 20 on top of the dial and looking closer you will find the names of Gulf and Porsche below the Gulf logo. 

Design concept and digital design by Mspeedster