2024 TAG Heuer Carrera Porsche 963 (CBU2010.FT6267)

Mspeedster

That maybe true, but you totally missed my point.

Back in the early-mid 2000s, when the first Monaco Gulf was created, there was nothing like it. Nevertheless, the look was instantly recognizable by anyone familiar with the movie Le Mans and the Monaco watch. That first one didn't have "Gulf", or "Porsche" or "McQueen", written on it, yet the presence of all 3 could be felt when looking at the watch. I remember when the watch was released, that's how I felt. And it wasn't just me, since the design is still here almost 20 years later.

That was my point, it didn't need words on the watch telling me what it was. This skeleton does, otherwise nobody would know it's a Porsche 963 collab watch. Even with the words, I'm not convinced.

Jim Dollares

But, is it really enough to own any Porsche or would you need to have a 963 in the garage for this watch to make sense?

Aquagraph

Well that's what Jim inferred when we tried it on in Oxford Street.


https://tagheuerenthusiast.blogspot.com/2024/03/feature-coco-meet-up-london-2023.html

Aquagraph

Well that's what Jim inferred when we tried it on in Oxford Street.


https://tagheuerenthusiast.blogspot.com/2024/03/feature-coco-meet-up-london-2023.html

dtf

Sadly I don’t have the car either.

bpsmith

But you have owned, and still own, Mercedes so it does make sense for you to own such a watch as your properly invested in the brand. It’s got that extra special element to it. That’s my point really @Albert-AMG.

Doesn’t harm that it’s a great looking watch too. 😀

Hubert

Here's mine!

Before fitting the bracelet.

After fitting the bracelet.

Albert-AMG

Probably the only link with a Porsche 963 is the '963' engraving on the strap, but I like this watch anyway 🥰

In any case it has a touch of motorsport in its design 👍. As for the inspiration of the dial in a tubular chassis... it would be more similar to that of a 917

perhaps 917 would have been a better name for this watch, since the subdials are also more reminiscent of the instrumentation of a 917

than the digital screens of a 963, more similar to a Connected than to a Carrera skeleton 😉

Aquagraph

Well, I disagree, but I've never seen the movie. But for argument's sake let's just say this is the perfect collab, I mean I can barely think of anything else that fits the criteria and I can think of a million other watches which are just like this 963. Basically a standard watch with a badged dial or some minor detail. Mind you thinking about it, the Aston Martin Carrera did take influence from the cars with the hexagon webbed dials. But then again I wouldn't have known it was an Aston Martin detail if they hadn't shown it alongside a photo of an Aston air vent...

Blue and orange, I agree, is instantly recognizable to anyone 'who knows'. When McLaren have a 'Gulf' paint job you know what it is without needing to see 'Gulf' on the car, but that is just a fortunate and unusual colour combination. I wouldn't think Gulf if I saw a blue and red stripe together. What about my Senna watch, nothing about that says Senna to me other than the fact that it says Senna on it. Two red stripes look cool, but basically meaningless. The only Senna watch that springs to mind as really hitting the mark would be the tourbillon with the coloured helmet on the back (the yellow and black one) or the Link with yellow, green and blue on it. In fact yellow and green should be the calling card for Senna watches, since that again is a colour combo which immediately shouts Brazil to me, and by extension 'Senna'.

But I bet TAG Heuer would tell us that Senna watches with red on them sell better than yellow ones.... which is why most of them are red highlighted.

Hubert

Here's mine!

Before fitting the bracelet.

After fitting the bracelet.

Mspeedster

Yes, the 917 and other vintage Porsche racecars used a tubular chassis, but not so on the modern racers like the 963. The marketing actually says the sub-dials are supposed to be like the headlights.

Which again is wrong for the 963.

But they do mimic the pattern on some Porsche road cars, like the 911. Which I think is cool.

But coming back to the 917, that's actually one of my pet peeves. I think TAG is missing an opportunity by not leveraging the Porsche partnership for the Monaco.

As I've said many times before, I'd love to see a Monaco x Porsche 917 x Gulf watch. If they used the tubular skeleton design on a Gulf Monaco Skeleton x Porsche 917, it would make a lot more sense. I get why TAG wants to focus on the Porsche 963, as it's the Le Mans racer that they currently sponsor. But there's still room for the Monaco IMHO.