TAG Heuer is a well known luxury brand dating back to 1860, the brand has a serious heritage and a history of innovation. The reputation of the Heuer watch company was tarnished during the 1980s and 1990s after the TAG acquisition. The brand became mass produced, the quality of the product deteriorated and the branding was haphazard to say the least.

The Heuer brand had a serious motor racing affiliation with Formula One being the pinnacle of their advertising alignment. Hence, the TAG Heuer Formula 1 models make sense from a marketing perspective. The Heuer motor racing sponsorship will improve with the LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton ownership with Frédéric Arnault taking the brand upmarket. With new CEO Julien Tornare taking control in January 2024, the brand is repositioning itself and becoming more upmarket.

The Formula 1 series totally fits the marketing profile of TAG Heuer, Techniques d’Avant Garde came from a formula one background so this should have been a great branding. However, the question I ask is, is this range a good fit for you? For me, the quality of the Formula 1 models that I tried on are just not what I want to be wearing at this phase of life. The Formula 1 series just does not meet the wrist feel that I require. The Formula 1 series are all quartz movements, that in itself is not an issue, they are an affordable entry into the TAG Heuer range.

For me, they just do not feel great on my wrist, and in watch circles, the wrist feel is everything. I do wear cheaper brand watches so you need to be a little aware of what you are wearing, the TAG Heuer is closer to Longines in quality and not Tissot or Hamilton, so that needs to be taken into account. An example is the Reference CAZ1014.BA0842, a 43 mm brushed case chronograph, a blue sunray dial with a three link bracelet with folding clasp and push release buttons.