The First Automatic Chronograph

During and after the Second World War, Heuer remained the foremost chronograph brand. The military (including General Eisenhower), pilots and sportsmen, were key clients for Heuer products. In 1964, the famous Carrera chronograph was launched. No more than one year later, a prototype was presented of the first chronograph based on a quarz movement, enabling time measurement with accuracy to 1/100th of a second. As early as 1965, it was possible to refine this to just 1/1000th of a second. In 1969 Heuer was the first to market a chronograph with mechanical self-winding movement. A year later, Heuer passed on to the last in the familiy line, Jack William Heuer, who was born in 1932, today Jack Heuer is the Honorary Chairman of TAG Heuer.

Heuer becomes TAG Heuer

Heuer was an early bird in the field of quarz technology, nevertheless the company was a spectacular victim of the Quarz Crisis that almost wiped out the Swiss watch industry at the end of 1970s. Despite the brilliance of some Heuer electronic (chronograph) timepieces, the tsunami of much cheaper quartz watches from Japenese and US makers flooding the market was too powerful. In 1982, two watch companies came to rescue of Heuer and alleviated its financial difficulties. Nouvelle Lemania and Piaget became the defacto owners of Heuer. Three years on, the two companies sold Heuer to Techniques d´Avant Garde, abbreviated to TAG. After its acquisition by TAG, the watch brand was renamed TAG Heuer. As far as marketing and product development were concerned, the "new"brand took inspiration from Heuer´s sports backgrounf´d and legendary chronograph tradition.