Gold watches are having something of a resurgence in 2023. First I was bowled over by the unashamedly opulent, all-gold offerings from Brew Watches, and now I’m lusting after the (significantly more expensive) TAG Heuer Carrera Chronograph.
Built as a final instalment to TAG Heuer’s 60th anniversary celebrations, the solid gold Carrera Chronograph harks back to a time when company boss Jack Heuer gifted all-gold watches to race-winning Formula One drivers.
The striking timepiece pairs an all-gold dial and case with a black leather strap that is perforated to give it a motorsport vibe. The strap nicely matches the ‘panda’ black 12-hour and 30-minute subdials, while the dial itself is decorated with vertical brushing and is surrounded by a gold tachymeter. This is used for calculating the average speed of a vehicle travelling a known distance – like a car completing a lap of a race track.
There’s also a date window at the six o’clock position, sat within a small seconds subdial. The all-gold case features a pair of push buttons for activating the chronograph functions, and an unguarded screw-down crown at the three o’clock position.
TAG Heuer says the watch is water resistant to 100 metres, and that its Heuer 02 Calibre TH20-00 automatic mechanical movement has an impressive power reserve of 80 hours. This means you could take the watch off and it would still tell the correct time just over three days later. That movement is visible through a sapphire exhibition case on the rear.
A striking detail of the TAG Heuer Carrera Chronograph is its “glass box”-style sapphire crystal, which curves outwards from the dial and gives the watch a vintage appearance with no external bezel.
As you might well expect, a solid-gold TAG Heuer dripping in vintage nostalgia and with a backstory closely linked to Formula One doesn’t come cheap. The Carrera Chronograph is priced at £18,750.
