Translating the exhilaration of revving up a Porsche 911 into horological form, the TAG Heuer Carrera Porsche Chronosprint merges signatures from both brands—and debuts a new movement—to pay homage to the shared 60th anniversaries of the TAG Heuer Carrera Collection and the Porsche 911.
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Originally termed the ‘901’, the Porsche 911 was released in 1963 and marked a milestone at the time; with the ability to go from 0 to 100km/h in just 9.1 seconds. That same year, the Heuer Carrera was revealed, with the manufacture’s then-CEO Jack Heuer naming the watch after the Carrera Panamericana, a high-stakes race that was introduced in 1950 and ran for five consecutive years. Featuring a clean, legible dial, the Heuer Carrera was notably devoid of extraneous elements that would distract the gaze of its wearer, going on to become a mainstay on the wrists of many in the racing circuit.
An homage to precision and speed, the TAG Heuer Carrera Porsche Chronosprint has been released in both steel and rose gold, each powered by the new in-house TH20-80 calibre, a reinterpretation of the manufacture’s TH20 unveiled earlier this year.
The new calibre is designed to mimic the Porsche 911’s groundbreaking acceleration, with the new central seconds hand accelerating and decelerating quickly. Translated to the dial, this means that when the chronograph function is activated, it will run faster than usual, covering a third of the dial (or 20 seconds) in 9.1 seconds, before decelerating as it reaches the top of the dial before accelerating again. Why? Well, because they can.
Each of the timepieces has a 42mm case size and has a ‘double glassbox’ domed sapphire crystal that flows over the bezel and allows the tachymetre scale to be read at any angle. The rose gold iteration features a beige dial while the steel has a silver one; both have rhodium-plated hour and minute hands, while the chronograph hand matches the tone of the case.
The tricompax layout sees two of the subdials accented with touches of silver, while the red lines on the flange mirror the Porsche 911’s achievement of 0 to100 km/h achievement in just 9.1 seconds. The subdial at 6 o’clock further references the dashboard of the 1970s Porsche, there the area around 50 km/h was highlighted to indicate the recommended speed in urban areas.
A sapphire crystal caseback allows the TH20-08 to be viewed in all its glory, with a dedicated mass designed to emulate Porsche’s three-spoked steering wheel. Both timepieces are presented on a leather strap embossed with ‘911’; brown for the rose gold edition and black for the steel edition.
The Carrera Porsche Chronosprint is priced at $13,350AUD for the steel and $34,100AUD for the rose gold, with both timepieces available via the TAG Heuer webstore.
Words by Henry Blake
