It was fifty years ago that race fans began to see the now famous light blue and orange Gulf stripes hit the automotive racing circuit. That’s more than enough reason for TAG Heuer to unveil a special edition of the brand’s square-cased Monaco chronograph, the Monaco Gulf Special Edition.
This latest U.S. Special Edition of the watch, just announced last week, features the emblematic blue and orange racing stripes along with the Gulf logo on the watch’s dial. The color scheme is maintained throughout the design of the timepiece, including the blue perforated leather strap accented with orange stitching.
The new TAG Heuer Monaco Gulf.
You may recall that the original Jack Heuer-designed Heuer Monaco was launched simultaneously in Geneva and New York in 1969 as the first automatic micro-winding chronograph that also happened to be the first Swiss made square and water resistant automatic chronograph. Early models are much-desired and highly collectible.
The first Gulf Racing edition, known as the "McQueen Monaco" (model 1133B), is so named because Steve McQueen famously portrayed driver Michael Delaney while wearing a Monaco 1133B Calibre 11 automatic timepiece in the 1971 film “Le Mans.” Gulf Oil sponsored McQueen’s character, and both his white livery and Porsche 917 car were decorated with the Gulf Stripes.
Steve McQueen wearing the original.
The special edition piece is only available in the United States (through 2017) and currently available for pre-sale until the end of the day on September 15 on TAGHeuer.com. Price: $5,900.
Specifications: TAG Heuer Monaco Gulf Special Edition
Movement: TAG Heuer automatic Calibre 11 with 40-hours of power reserve
Case: steel 39 mm diameter, domed and beveled sapphire crystal, polished steel standard crown, 100-meters of water resistance
Dial: Blue sunray brushed, blue and orange Gulf stripes, blue flange with 60 second / minute scale, 2 counters: at 3 o'clock : silver opaline permanent second indicator; black lacquered hand; at 9 o'clock : silver opaline minute chronograph counter; black lacquered hand; red lacquered central hand White HEUER printed logo, 6 o'clock angled date, MONACO AUTOMATIC CHRONOGRAPH printed, Gulf printed logo
Strap: Blue calf skin strap with orange lining, polished steel folding clasp with double safety push-buttons; HEUER shield