TAG Heuer Monaco – From Steve McQueen to Walter White

Text: Filip Ericsson

At the end of the 60s the legendary, idiosyncratically shaped sports chronograph Heuer Monaco remained the most brightly shining star in the brand's sky and a highly integrated part of the era's forward spirit and glamour. It has now by a margin passed 50 years and deserves a little attention.  

But "Heuer Monaco"? Well, TAG Heuer was called Heuer back then and the Monaco was born in 1969, in an exciting time when the exploration of sea and space enchanted a whole generation. A time when glamorous sports such as car racing fascinated old and young alike.

In the wake of all these exciting advances, horological gains were also made in order to provide timekeepers to assist humanity in its exploding thirst for adventure. And the Heuer Monaco was one of those timekeepers. 

History 

As early as 1860 the Swiss brand was founded, then under the name Heuer, and early on became synonymous with car racing and chronograph watches. As early as 1869 Heuer won its first patent and in 1882 their first chronograph came out. 

At the end of the 60s's chronographs such as the Carrera (as we have written about before) and the Monaco were the most brightly shining stars in the Heuer sky and an integrated part of the era's wrist-worn vanity.  

The Heuer story is filled with cool, tasteful creations that were once born in the Saint-Imier factory among the mountains in western Switzerland, and that match the exciting stories that came with them.  

In modern times they have also, in the retro trend that still prevails, created new versions of some of their tastiest watches – and the Monaco is one of them. 

Monaco

In the middle of the 60s Heuer began a collaboration with Breitling and Hamilton to develop a new chronograph movement with automatic winding, the world's first. The presentation of the movement, called Calibre 11, took place in 1969 and coincided with a completely new watch: the Monaco.

The new watch was a pure sports chronograph inspired by the car races of the time and had a highly distinctive, almost square shape. The functions too were oddly placed with the chronograph pushers "slanted" and out towards the corners as well as the crown on the left side of the case.

The Monaco did not only house one of the first automatic chronograph movements but was also one of the world's first water-resistant watches with a square/rectangular shape. The name was a tribute to the annual Gran Prix race in Monaco itself, a competition that they still sponsor.

But they were not content with that. Under the motto "There are no legends without heroes" Heuer made an extremely cunning product placement of the new watch, and made sure that the super icon Steve McQueen wore it during the filming of the equally iconic film Le Mans with its premiere in 1971. The exposure in the film in combination with the distinctive shape made so the Monaco one of history's most famous watches.

Despite this, the Monaco with its eye-catching shape was however no great sales success, and production was shut down as early as the middle of the 70s.

Heuer becomes TAG Heuer 

As a consequence of the so-called quartz crisis that had struck the Swiss watch industry during the 1970s, Heuer was sold in 1982 to Piaget, and the family company that had lived ever since 1860 ended up in outside hands for the first time.  

In 1985 the company changed owners again when it was bought up by the racing technology manufacturer TAG (Techniques d'Avant Garde), and TAG Heuer was born. Today the brand is owned by the luxury brand conglomerate LVMH.

The Monaco is resurrected  

The Monaco was resurrected in 1998, then of course under the name TAG Heuer Monaco, with a limited edition of 5000 watches. In 2003 a new version came out that was so similar to the original that it was hard to tell them apart, to the enthusiasts' delight one must presume.

Under the hood sat a new chronograph movement based on the famous ETA 2894-2 in combination with a chronograph module from Dubois-Depraz, two highly renowned Swiss watch manufacturers that supply whole movements or parts to many world-famous luxury brands such as Breitling and Omega.

The modern Monaco of course also had sapphire crystal while it took until 2009 before the water resistance reached the equivalent of 100m, as is proper for a modern sports watch. That same year a back in sapphire crystal was also added so that you could enjoy the capable chronograph movement visually too.

The Monaco today

In 2019 the Monaco was updated with small detail changes in shape as well as a completely new movement – Calibre Heuer 02 – designed and produced inhouse, or at least within the LVMH group which also includes Zenith and Hublot. It is a modern unit with a column wheel construction and a good 80 hours of power reserve which has moreover been measured to a particularly exact rate, well within chronometer standard.

The measurements are completely square at 39x39mm which differs somewhat from the original's 40×38.5mm, while the thickness at its 15mm is identical between the generations. There are certainly more graceful chronographs, but the well-fed profile should hardly constitute an obstacle for enthusiasts of sporty chronographs.

A multitude of limited special versions have come and gone since the introduction while today's choices are limited to different colours on the dial as well as a steel link bracelet or leather strap.

Prices today start at around 75 000 kronor according to the Swedish list price. No low prices then, but the Monaco with its fine movement and prestige-laden name is likely to be able to compete with greats such as the Breitling Premier Chronograph and the Zenith El Primero.

For me it was not Steve McQueen who opened my eyes to the distinctive chronograph from TAG Heuer, but Walter White, the lead character in the twisted crime series Breaking Bad. In the last season (season 5) from 2012 Walter is namely given a Monaco as a 51st birthday present by his constantly worried sidekick Jesse Pinkman.

The Monaco then takes an active part in a number of scenes during the season. The sequence where Walter times the delicate task of simultaneously taking the lives of ten gang members in prison is as nasty as it is beautiful when the Monaco's ticking chronograph function is filmed close-up.

In recent years older Heuers have risen sharply in value and the holy grail, Steve McQueen's own Monaco, was sold in 2020 for around 20 million kronor at auction. The legend lives on then and I never thought I would fancy a TAG Heuer. Until now.

The doubts that exist around the brand TAG Heuer undeniably end up in the backwater namely upon a study of the Monaco. With its capable specifications, its glamorous history and handsome, extroverted shape there is nothing to do but capitulate.