The first result of the collaboration is the Tag Heuer Carrera Porsche Chronograph
February 4, 2021: Swiss luxury watchmaker Tag Heuer and the German sportscar manufacturer Porsche have announced their new partnership: an authentic alliance that builds over their common DNA in motorsports and racing. The holistic and long-term collaboration will range from competitions to product development. A new watch, the TAG Heuer Carrera Porsche Chronograph, is unveiled as the first celebration of the iconic brands.
TAG Heuer CEO Frédéric Arnault says, “TAG Heuer and Porsche have common history and values, of course, but more importantly, we share an attitude. Like Porsche, we are disruptors at heart, always in pursuit of high performance. With this alliance, TAG Heuer and Porsche finally come together officially after decades of close encounters and will create unmatched experiences and products for customers and fans that are passionate about both our brands and what we stand for.”
Both brands have had a close relationship with the Carrera races. Porsche had a class win in the Carrera Panamericana race of 1954. In honour of its successful participation, Porsche calls its most powerful engine ‘Carrera’. Jack Heuer created the first Heuer Carrera chronograph in 1963, designed to let drivers tell the time at a glance in the heat of action. This ground-breaking timepiece and Porsche’s most powerful Carrera engine united Porsche and Heuer – for the first time – in the spirit of the ‘Carrera’ (or ‘race’).
Jack Heuer was also responsible for the Heuer Monaco, the first square-faced, water-resistant automatic chronograph watch. Its name evoked the Monaco Grand Prix as well as the Principality’s renowned Monte Carlo Rally, which Porsche won in three consecutive years, from 1968 to 1970, with its signature 911 model.
Ferry Porsche & Jo Siffert
The Heuer Monaco’s innovations had come at a significant financial cost and as an alternative to an expensive advertising campaign, Jack Heuer further cemented his brand’s link to Porsche with a creative sponsorship arrangement with Fribourg, Switzerland-based racing driver and Porsche dealer Jo Siffert. In 2005, at the premiere of the film Jo Siffert: Live Fast – Die Young, Jack Heuer remembered the terms of their contract: “In exchange for CHF 25,000, he would put our logo on his car and suit. In addition, he could buy our watches at wholesale prices and resell them to his racing friends at a substantial profit. Which he did with great success because half of the F1 paddock was wearing Heuer watches by the end of the 1969 season!”
It was this connection that led Steve McQueen to wear the Heuer logo on his racing suit during the filming of Le Mans in 1970, in which he drove a Porsche 917.
Steve McQueen as Jo Siffert
In 1999, TAG Heuer, as a founding partner of the Formula E championship, helped raise the profile of thrilling single-seater races in electric cars. Porsche created its own Formula E team with TAG Heuer as title and timing partner in 2019, marking a starting point for an even more powerful and far-reaching collaboration. And now, the brands have announced an official brand partnership, celebrated by a special-edition timepiece.
The TAG Heuer Carrera Porsche Chronograph picks up from a common inspiration between the two brands: Carrera. Based on TAG Heuer’s Carrera Sport Chronograph design, with its distinctive tachymeter scale engraved on the bezel, it introduces a number of features inspired by Porsche’s design essence. Porsche’s engraved inscription is visible on the bezel and the unmistakable font is also used for the indexes. The Porsche colours of red, black, and grey – which also recall historic Heuer models – are incorporated throughout the watch, and on clear display through the transparent cristal case back is the oscillating mass, which has been redesigned in affectionate tribute to Porsche’s celebrated steering wheel. It is printed with “Porsche” and “TAG Heuer”. The dial’s asphalt effect, created especially for this watch, perfectly expresses a passion for the road, while Arabic numerals suggest the numbers on the dashboard of fine Porsche sportscars.
At the heart of this stunning timepiece is the in-house Calibre Heuer 02 manufacture movement with an impressive 80-hour power reserve. The chronograph mechanism’s vertical clutch and column wheel demonstrate the brands’ unflinching demand for absolute precision.
Finally, the TAG Heuer Carrera Porsche Chronograph is a Special Edition watch and is delivered in bespoke packaging with colours and a style consistent with the remarkable watch inside. The black watch box features the logos of TAG Heuer and Porsche in white. Inside the box is a perfectly-sized black travel pouch with an unmistakably Porsche red interior.
The 2021 partnership will feature a rich portfolio of joint projects that reflect TAG Heuer’s and Porsche’s shared commitment to speed and precision sports.
Tag Heuer & Porsche for Formula E
The TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team made history in its debut season. It set a milestone at the opener in Diriyah (SA) in November 2019, when André Lotterer crossed the finish line in second place. In its second year, the TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team will not only continue to attract new fans to a circuit that pits all-electric cars against each other, but also fight for the World Championship. Behind the wheel of Porsche’s latest all-electric racecar, the 99X Electric, will be drivers André Lotterer and his new teammate, Pascal Wehrlein.
Porsche has long distinguished itself in endurance events and together with TAG Heuer its GT Team is well prepared for the coming FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC). The milestone year will also include series partnerships in ten editions of the worldwide one-make cup series Porsche Carrera Cup. In addition to physical competitions, TAG Heuer also engages in virtual racing by supporting the Porsche TAG Heuer Esports Supercup.
TAG Heuer and Porsche also share a passion for golf and tennis. Tag Heuer will become the official partner of the many golf and tennis championships that Porsche hosts.
Coming together for the benefit of their shared clients, TAG Heuer and Porsche are aiming to create unforgettable moments through different experience formats.
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