TAG Heuer's New Releases from Watches and Wonders 2024: Carrera and Monaco

Welcome to a special Watches and Wonders edition of Dialed In, Esquire’s column bringing you horological happenings and the most essential news from the watch world. As the show takes place in Geneva, we’ll keep you up to date on the biggest makers’ biggest releases of 2024.

Last year was the year of the Carrera. And there was no better time for it—the iconic chronograph was celebrating its sixtieth birthday, after all. But it seems that TAG Heuer wasn’t prepared to call it quits after just a year. Because now that Watches and Wonders is upon us, bringing with it a bevy of major new releases from some of the biggest names in the watch game, we can report that for 2024, TAG Heuer is still paying plenty of attention to its flagship time-teller.

This time around, the lineup is a little bit sporty, a little bit vintage, and a little bit fancy to boot. The standout of the show is the updated Carrera Chronograph (the lead image of this story). Based on the 7753 SN from the late 1960s, it’s a 39mm bi-compax with a panda dial—black subdials on silver—that’ll scratch the retro itch, even though it’s more of a tribute than a nuts-and-bolts reproduction. The glassbox sapphire crystal offers a cleaner look and extra legibility.

The rose gold Carrera Skipper.

There’s also a new version of the Carrera Skipper, now in rose gold instead of stainless steel. It has a subtle feel to it that’s undeniably appealing, but it would have been really cool to see what the graphic, colorful, yacht-racing-inspired design looked like with all the flash and oomph of a yellow-gold case. Maybe we’ll catch something along those lines next year?

The three Carrera Date references.

Rounding out the Carrera offerings for 2024 is a trio of Carrera Date references, which get a bit glitzy with elements like mother-of-pearl dials and, in one execution, a whopping seventy-six diamonds. At 36mm, they’re right in the sweet spot for the smaller-watch trend that’s been permeating the industry—and well positioned as a unisex go-to.

The Monaco Split-Seconds Chronograph in red.

And finally, if you’re not feeling the Carrera—or if you got one last year to mark the anniversary—there’s a pretty wild take on the Monaco to consider. The Monaco Split-Seconds Chronograph comes in either a red or a blue motif and is made from a mix of sapphire and grade 5 titanium. The sapphire, employed most strikingly on the bezel and dial, gives the design a sense of openness and transparency. And the titanium, which comprises not just the case but the entire movement, brings the weight way down. Dubbed the TH81-00 caliber and developed in conjunction with Vaucher Manufacture Fleurier, it’s one of the lightest mechanical chronograph movements TAG Heuer has ever made.

The Monaco Split-Seconds Chronograph in blue.

The price tag might make you sweat—retail is $138,000, with customization bumping it up to $169,000—but that’s kind of the point. This isn’t for casual fans. It’s Haute Horlogerie d’Avant-Garde. The big swing. The pinnacle watchmaking expression of TAG Heuer’s watchmaking expertise at the biggest watch show of the year. Luckily, it just so happens to look really damn cool, too.