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Can TAG Heuer Reinvent the Classic Monaco?

written by A.Morgan - 19th Dec 2011

The problem with creating an icon is following it up. Can TAG Heuer do it?

Writing an excellent album, driving a superb race, designing a legendary watch – once these things have been achieved, it can be very difficult to better them.

So how do you follow up a huge success? There’s the Rolling Stones method – do what you’ve always done and continue doing it forever – the Steve Jobs method – obsessively pursue the next big mind-altering thing – or there’s the Gordon Brown method – put your fingers in your ears, pretend like nothing is happening and hope things sort themselves out.

TAG Heuer, since the mid-to-late eighties, have been leaning more towards the Rolling Stones method of getting things done and it’s worked out very well for them too, but it hasn’t exactly been, well, exciting. The longer the brand stays comfortable in its niche of creating inoffensive watches that rely on their rich heritage, the harder it is to get out of the rut and really make an impact.

That’s not to say that the introduction of Techniques d’Avant Garde to Heuer hasn’t sparked the occasional attempted re-ignition of the oomph that made Heuer so exciting and popular in its heyday, but more often than not, the results have fizzled out to nothing. This seems strange, particularly because TAG have access to some of the most interesting and exciting technology in the world (a 21% share of the McLaren Group, for example).

The Monaco has been somewhat of a staple diet for TAG Heuer in recent years, which seems almost a bizarre statement to make considering the watch’s impact when it was first launched. The outlandish shape, the secretive water-proofing techniques and the promotion by style legend Steve McQueen have given way to gentle reminiscing and vague special editions – that is until now, because the original boldness that made the Monaco such a smash-hit, is back.

Dubbed the ‘Monaco Twenty-Four,’ this new iteration of the old favourite is no shrinking violet. The faceted black-PVD’d case snugly holds the angled, trapezoidal crystals on both the front and back, through which a floating dial and movement are locked in place by four bolts that slice through the case. Dainty this thing is not; eye-catching, it is.

Having pillaged the El Primero movement (here called the Calibre 36) from the other LVMH favourite, Zenith, the Twenty-Four addresses the age-old question of how to make a hand that travels in a circular pattern fit a rectangular watch by ignoring the difference altogether. Both the dial and movement are as per a round-cased watch, but are secured to the rectangular case by four, industrial-esque bolts that skewer the case at each corner, leaving a void floating between the crystal sandwich.

The fun doesn’t stop there – the dial has been given a good dose of retro-futuristic glamour too, starting with the iconic Gulf colouring. The best part though is easily the square half-sub-dials that straddle the raised centre section of the dial. Each one has a double-ended hand that reappears as soon as the other end disappears, to make it a sort-of-cheating retrograde that actually works extremely well. It also can’t help but be noticed that the sub-dials have a very retro shape to them too, and sat alongside the chunky polished crown and pusher set, it all feels distinctly sporty.

As you would expect from such an experienced watchmaker, comfort is right up there and the details are fun and well thought-out. Some of the finishes could be improved for the price, but it’s easy to believe that a lot of budget has gone into the fantastic muscle-car styling rather than the overall finish.

At a fiver short of £9,000, the Twenty-Four is a priced a little higher than most would have hoped, but that doesn’t stop it being a great turnaround in creative direction for the once supreme watchmaker. With concept projects like the belt driven Monaco V4 (upon whose case shape the Twenty-Four is based) and the Mikrotimer Flying 1000 taking centre-stage, it’s great to see design elements reaching watches that are actually available to the masses. It finally looks like the cutting-edge trend-setter is well and truly back on track.