Nissan returns to Le Mans in 2015 with a radical new LMP1 race car, the GT-R LM Nismo, with the occasion commemorated by the Carrera “NISMO” Calibre 16 Day-Date Chronograph Special Edition.

After a 16 year absence Nissan will once again compete in the Le Mans endurance race with the newly developed Nissan GT-R LM NISMO, a petrol-electrical hybrid boasting 1250 hp. TAG Heuer has just announced the official watch for the team, the Carrera “NISMO” Calibre 16 Day-Date Chronograph Special Edition. While the Team Nissan NISMO race car is an advanced hybrid, the Carrera “NISMO” is a traditional mechanical watch in titanium with a Sellita automatic movement.

The titanium case is 43mm with a black titanium carbide coating. And inside is the Sellita SW500 chronograph movement (an equivalent of the Valjoux 7750). The bezel is scratch resistant black ceramic, while the case back has the Team Nissan NISMO logo silkscreened on the sapphire crystal. 

TAG Heuer has lots of historical association with auto-racing, but its past connection to Le Mans is fictitious but perhaps even more famous. Steve McQueen wore the TAG Heuer Monaco ref. 1133B in the film Le Mans, giving rise to the “Steve McQueen” nickname for that model, which has also been reissued in 2015.

A limited production watch available only in 2015, the Carrera “NISMO” retails for US$5,300 and S$7,250.