Race through time: TAG Heuer Autavia

As TAG Heuer marks the 60th anniversary of its Autavia with a new collection, we take a look back at its high-octane heritage

Watches & Jewellery 29 Mar 2022

Jack Heuer is well known for the many groundbreaking tool watches he created after joining the family firm in the late 1950s – but perhaps the most important of all was the very first he had a hand in: the Autavia.

The Autavia name dates back to 1933 when it was used on a dashboard timer designed for AUTomobilists and AVIAtors. But not until 1962 did the Autavia wrist chronograph appear, aimed (according to contemporary advertising) at ‘pilots, sportsmen, divers and scientists’.

It was the first Heuer wristwatch to have a name, as well as the first to feature a rotating bezel that could be had with a choice of division markers – including a 12-hour version that enabled the watch to show two time zones simultaneously.

TAG Heuer Autavia COSC GMT, £3,500

Heuer (Jack) worked hard to promote the Autavia and his efforts made it a familiar sight on the arms of the era’s top racing drivers, including Graham Hill, Jochen Rindt, Derek Bell and Jo Siffert – and, as strange as it might seem in today’s electronic age, they all regarded their Autavias as essential tools for timing both their own race laps and those of their competitors.

The first-generation Autavia remained in production until 1985 and was variously available in a number of different styles, colours and specifications, including as a dive watch, a GMT watch and a pilot’s watch. Although all had hand-wound movements for the first few years, an automatic model was introduced in 1969 – the most collectable and rare examples of which come from a small, early batch that were marked “Chronomatic” above the Heuer logo.

The Calibre Heuer 02 is TAG Heuer’s powerful, COSC-certified in-house movement

The Autavia name was revived by TAG Heuer in 2003 and, in 2016, the brand staged the Autavia Cup, in which fans were invited to vote for which of 16 vintage Autavia designs they wanted to see revived in a new watch to be launched the following year. The eventual winner was the Reference 2446 – the version famously worn by the late, lamented Rindt, who was killed in practice for the 1970 Italian Grand Prix.

This year, to mark the 60th anniversary of the Autavia wristwatch, TAG Heuer has revamped its historic creation with the launch of a trio of new 42mm models that both hark back to the history of the original and take the design forward into a whole new era.

Two are powered by the Calibre Heuer 02 “flyback” manufacture movement, a COSC chronometer-certified chronograph that can be stopped and reset with a single push of the button.

TAG Heuer Autavia Chronometer Flyback, £5,800

The first is a black, DLC-coated model based on the highly collectable military Reference 1550SG (a watch produced during the 1960s for the German Air Force), while the other combines a polished stainless-steel case with a silver dial with two black chronograph counters – the so-called “panda” look that appeared on some especially rare vintage Autavias.

The final new model brings back the GMT function first available on the original Autavia chronograph of 1962. This time, however, the watch takes the form of a conventional three-hand design with an additional orange-coloured hand that synchronises with 24 divisions on the bezel.

TAG Heuer Autavia Chronometer Flyback, £5,250

In all cases, the classic Autavia traits of readability, functionality and robustness have been enhanced and combined with other signature features of the model, such as a high level of luminosity, bi-directional bezels and extra-large winding crowns.

Up-to-the-minute touches, meanwhile, include sapphire crystal case backs on chronograph models (the GMT watch gets a solid back engraved with the image of an aero engine) and a quick-release strap/bracelet system that allows easy interchangeability.

Whichever one you choose, you’ll have yourself a watch for life – or for the next 60 years at the very least…

TAG Heuer Autavia, from £3,500; tagheuer.com