No doubt looking to find some breathing space after the hubbub of Watches and Wonders last week, TAG Heuer has dropped an update to its 2025 revamped collection of the brand’s iconic plastic-cased 1980s watch, the “Formula 1.”
The five new pieces are called the “pastel collection” by TAG, and all are built on the same solar-powered Formula 1 Solargraph 38 mm that launched in March last year. Two models feature a sandblasted stainless steel case, while the remaining three have cases made from TAG’s proprietary bio-polamide plastic, Polylight.
It’s these Polylight versions that, for WIRED, are the stars of the new mini collection. Coming in pastel blue, beige, and pink, and sporting case-matching rubber straps and bidirectional-rotating Polylight bezels, they reference classic F1 designs that made the line iconic in the first place.
The stainless steel models have a 3-link sandblasted steel bracelet and either a “pastel green” or “lavender blue” dial with matching Polylight bezels. The dials on both watches also see eight diamonds replace the circular hour markers. TAG says these models add “a touch of refinement for those seeking sophistication,” but considering these “luxury” F1s will retail at $2,800, as opposed to the already punchy $1,950 full Polylight versions, our pick is most definitely the plastic pieces.
Not only do these blue, beige, and pink versions pleasingly hark back to vintage F1 designs—though now 38 mm in size instead of the original 35 mm—but also, just like all F1 Solargraphs, they come equipped with screw-down crowns and casebacks, making for 100 meters of water resistance and ensuring these will serve well as dive and sports watches. My recommendation? Go for the pink, it looks superb on the wrist. The beige is a very close second.
The original multicolored Formula 1 watch launched in 1986 and sold in its millions. Made until 1995, it was worn by McLaren’s world-beating class of drivers, including Ayrton Senna, Alain Prost, and Michael Schumacher. In 2024, TAG brought it back in its original 35 mm sizes for a limited remake as a collaboration with the US streetwear label Kith. The new F1s are not just larger. Other subtle design enhancements have been deployed: luminous hour markers, crisper hands, a sleeker, more angular interpretation of the old case shape, and Polylight instead of the old “Arnite” thermoplastic.
The new F1s are also solar powered, using TAG’s TH-50 movement with the solar module and circuitry from Citizen in Japan, attached to timekeeping elements supplied by Citizen’s Swiss subsidiary, La Joux-Perret. The dial, consisting of two superposed polymer layers, lets light through to a solar cell beneath, charging a battery that delivers energy to the movement. If left in complete darkness, a fully charged F1 will continue to run for 10 months, then once dead, it takes just 10 seconds of light exposure to restart.
This new collection should let fans of the originals bag a new plastic F1 with greater ease than the 2025 launch, which restricted plastic options to limited-edition drops tied to certain races on the F1 calendar. The pastel blue and beige don’t appear to be limited editions, but that pink version is restricted to 1,110 pieces for the 110th anniversary of the Indy 500 this year.
Although a fan of the F1s, WIRED has always felt these 38 mm models are priced slightly high. After all, Citizen’s own watches using the same tech top out at around $600. But they are still considerably cheaper than TAG’s Aquaracer Solargraph.
However, TAG could do well to remember that the Formula 1’s origins were heavily influenced by the success of the Swatch. Considering this, and the success of the MoonSwatch, Swatch’s smash-hit Omega tie-up from 2022, it would have been really something to see TAG price these pastel plastic solar pieces more aggressively, perhaps under $1,500, or ideally closer to the $1,000 mark. But considering the astonishing and eye-watering price increases of luxury timepieces at this year’s Watches and Wonders, this was never going to happen.
There is another way, though. If $1,950 feels like too much to lay down on a plastic solar TAG, why not do like me and buy one of the many, many original F1s on the secondhand market? As I write this very article, I’m wearing my much-loved black and pink F1 WA1217 that I grabbed off eBay. It’s beautiful and cost me just $550. Now that’s value for money.
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