Heuer Carrera 12 Dato

If there’s one thing Heuer does well, it’s chronographs. For over a century the manufacture has made that complication its particular area of expertise. Born from an innate understanding of the needs of sportsmen, each one of these watches—whether it has Carrera, Autavia, or Monza on the dial—has held up Heuer’s reputation for excellence.

And yet, outside the realm of sporting watches, lies its triple calendar chronographs.

Heuer first started incorporating day and date functions into its watches in the 1940s. Before long these were coupled with Heuer’s pièce de résistance, the chronograph, as well as the occasional moon phase indicator. Powered by Valjoux column wheel movements, they were the perfect counterpart to the robust sports models that would follow, such as the Carrera.

Indeed, it’s with the Carrera that this watch, a Reference 2457, is (somewhat inexplicably) linked.

According to On the Dash, that inexhaustible resource for all things vintage Heuer, the Reference 2457 was introduced in the early 1960s—a year before the Carrera, in fact. But its case bore beefy faceted lugs similar to those that would go on to grace the Carrera. The 2547 had such a striking similarity to the Carrera that it was referred to as the “Carrera 12 Dato” in the 1966/67 Heuer catalog—despite not having the model name on the dial!

But there are other elements, evident here, that were obviously carried into the Carrera, that justify Heuer's choice to tie the two models together: the elegant applied markers, recessed subdials, and zen-like simplicity of the dial, despite the amount of information displayed.

The watch that we offer here is an example of the second execution of Carrera 12 Dato, with a white-on-white dial housed in a case with thinner lugs than the first execution model. The outer track—here depicting the days of the month—is printed on the dial here in bright blue. And powering it all is the Valjoux 723, sedately cataloguing every passing second of daily existence.

Our Pledge

Analog:Shift stands behind the authenticity of our products in perpetuity.

Condition

Since our pieces are vintage or pre-owned, please expect wear & patina from usage and age. Please read each item description and examine all product images.

Warranty

We back each Analog:Shift vintage timepiece with a one-year mechanical warranty from the date of purchase.

International Buyers

Please contact us prior to purchase for additional details on shipping and payment options.

All of our watches include complementary insured shipping within the 50 states.

Most of our products are on hand and will ship directly from our headquarters in New York City. In some cases, watches will be shipped directly from one of our authorized partners.

We generally ship our products via FedEx, fully insured, within 5 business days of purchase. An adult signature is required for receipt of all packages for insurance purposes. Expedited shipping is available at an additional cost. We are also happy to hand deliver your purchase in Manhattan or you may pick it up at our showroom.

Returns must be sent overnight or by priority international delivery, fully insured and paid for by the customer. A restocking fee may apply. Watches must be returned in the same condition as initially shipped.

We welcome international buyers, please contact us prior to purchase for additional details on shipping and payment options.