Tag Heuer Carrera: From Heritage To Innovation - Calibre 1 Vintage & Calibre 17 RS2

Feb 01, 2008,08:50 AM
 


TAG Heuer CARRERA: FROM HERITAGE TO INNOVATION

 

In 1964, a young, Swiss visionary watchmaker, Jack Heuer, great grandson of Edouard Heuer, founder of the company of the same name in 1860, launched the first Heuer Carrera, as a tribute to the Carrera Panamericana Mexican Road Race, thus sealing TAG Heuer's association with the world of racing. In 2007, the Grand Carrera collection made a splash with its contemporary, top-of-the-range version of this mythical series, inspired by GT coup é s and the unrivalled heritage of the brand in the world of cars. To take in hand this prestigious quest for performance, two new models are presented this year: the TAG Heuer Carrera Calibre 1 Vintage, a limited edition equipped with a hand-wound mechanical movement, celebrating the origins of this extraordinary adventure, and the Grand Carrera Calibre 17 RS2, a sleek, high-tech concentrate, precursor to future developments in the range.

 

To provide an appropriate setting for this extraordinary confrontation between Yesterday and Tomorrow, TAG Heuer is unveiling an exhibition area at this launch: the TAG Heuer 360 museum, a historic, avant-garde gallery in celebration of TAG Heuer's exceptional heritage. Opened at La Chaux-de-Fonds on the 30th January 2008, in the presence of Lewis Hamilton and many celebrities, this museum offers visitors a unique audiovisual experience. Of exceptional architectural design and circular scenography, it exhibits 150 years of watchmaking history dedicated to mastering infinitely small measures of time. Whether timekeeping is used for sports or wristwatches, the museum allows technological, aesthetic innovations to be discovered, all of which mark key stages in the history of Swiss watchmaking.

 

TAG Heuer CARRERA CALIBRE 1 VINTAGE

Limited Edition

 

The lines are as pure as the contours of a classic car. The simple dial breathes. The indices say it all in few words. At the back, the responsive motor fascinates. Simply round, completely black, it minimises style effects for the sake of what matters: raw sporting elegance. Both traditional and contemporary, this celebration of symmetry and discretion advocates a purist alternative at a time when all that is ostentatious is tiresome. Why so many escapades when all that is really needed is within reach?  

 


 

The first hand-wound mechanical movement in the TAG Heuer CARRERA series since 1996, this limited edition of 6000 watches hosts a movement that was historically used in the pocket watches of the 1960s. The 43mm diameter polished steel case gives the dial space for its ode to simplicity. The small second at 6 o'clock with a semi-circular graduation is the only liberty taken in this opus, with the rhodium hand indicating 0 to 30 seconds and the red hand indicating 30 to 60 seconds. The Clous de Paris decoration, repeated on the calibre and the rubber strap, is reminiscent of the great watchmaking tradition and secures TAG Heuer CARRERA CALIBRE 1 VINTAGE's place in the history of timekeeping. The black interchangeable watchbands in alligator or organic rubber offer the only possible interpretations in the TAG Heuer CARRERA range: resolutely chic or definitively sporty, two concepts that are inseparable from current advances in watchmaking. The concern for aesthetic detail, whether in the hand-applied indices and logo, the sapphire crystal's double anti-reflection treatment or the polished hands, matches the finesse of the mechanical movement visible through the transparent case back.

 

There is no doubt that TAG Heuer's CARRERA CALIBRE 1 VINTAGE perfectly expresses the quiet strength of a collection that has always been true to its founding principle: prestige in the service of performance. Consequently, all records are permitted, but with style. Whether it is the smallest interval ever recorded - 2/10,000ths of a second in the Race of Champions 2006 between Mathias Ekström and Heikki Kovalainen (both TAG Heuer ambassadors!), or the formidable line-up of winners in the FIA World Championship's 2007 Formula 1 made up of Kimi Räikkönen, Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso - all TAG Heuer ambassadors - car racing offers TAG Heuer the best setting in which to exercise the rights of a range condemned to precision, dedicated to innovation and acquitted by elegance.

 

The way is now clear to smash every record there is...

 

GRAND CARRERA CALIBRE 17 RS2

Limited Edition in Titanium Grade 2

 

It is a high-tech GT racing car ready to devour the road. Sleek, powerful, technical and resolutely virile, the GRAND CARRERA CALIBRE 17 RS2 is shaped for racing car circuits. Streamlined to win the race, its chassis is made of Titanium Grade 2 (Ti2), a pure metal that offers three times more resistance than steel but which is twice as light. The black matt strap in ‘soft touch’ rubber-coated alligator and the faceted horns ensure optimal ergonomics: this mechanism will stay on the wrist as surely as a GT coupé will stay on the road. A competition-ready body, it is coated with a black titanium carbide treatment to resist scratches under impact. The red of the seconds hand, echoed on the crown, in the stitching and on the back of the strap, is the crowning achievement in aesthetics dedicated to ultimate performance.

 


 

The mechanism is as fine as the exterior: hence, this is a COSC-certified chronograph, equipped with the renowned Rotating System, signature of the GRAND CARRERA collection. A revolutionary display which enables intuitive easy reading of the timer since the manual reference hand remains still while the hands turn: the small seconds counter is at 3 o'clock and the chronograph minute counter is at 9 o'clock. From its Côte de Genève decor to the polished bevelled edge of the Rotating System, the hands, the hand-applied logo or indices in black gold, and the double sapphire case back revealing a turbine that has been propelled into the future, the combination of details brings a distinctly exclusive touch to this limited series of 1000 watches.

 

Spearhead of the GRAND CARRERA collection, this extreme version destines the series to the best podiums. To each his own: if the GRAND CARRERA Calibre 6 RS, which dedicates its Rotating System to a small second hand at 6 o'clock, is aimed at the connoisseur in search of classic but sporting elegance, the globetrotter will not be able to resist the GRAND CARRERA Calibre 8 RS GRAND DATE GMT. Finally, the GRAND CARRERA Calibre 17 RS chronograph, at the origin of the RS version presented above, offers a luxury vision of sporting passion, illustrating with panache that surpassing oneself does not necessarily mean having to smell of motor oil. At the heart of the GRAND CARRERA collection only one thing is sure: when passion and the desire to succeed come together, the determination to win knows no bounds. Thus, all things are possible: technology fuels pure emotion.


This message has been edited by AnthonyTsai on 2008-02-01 09:41:55

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