This is a public horological announcement: the IWC Ingenieur SL is back, not literally but figuratively, in the form of the IWC Ingenieur Automatic 40! Of the many reissues or revivals across the watch industry, this was one in the making for a considerable amount of time. It has been 47 years since the IWC Ingenieur SL was launched, and now diehard fans of the watch can rejoice.
Genta’s Midas Touch
During the 1970s, IWC commissioned Gérald Genta to breathe new life into the IWC Ingenieur, which had existed since 1955. By then, Genta was already a rockstar in the watch industry, with notable watch designs credited to his CV, including the inimitable pieces released in 1970 and 1976 (Google them). Make no mistake, the original IWC Ingenieur ref. 666 was a handsome watch, but the head honchos felt it needed an additional oomph or two since it was intended as a tool watch. Genta duly obliged, upping the ante a few notches with the souped-up IWC Ingenieur SL ref. 1832. His Midas touch includes a five-recess screw-on bezel, an integrated H-link bracelet and a unique dial pattern which combined for a highly distinctive visual identity.
Engineered for Ingenieur
Instead of taking the easy way out and putting out a blatant reproduction of the IWC Ingenieur SL, IWC tweaked Genta’s design blueprint ever so slightly for the IWC Ingenieur Automatic 40. There was definitely nostalgia while looking at the contemporary version, but at the same time, it was a tad foreign from the ref. 1832. Much of the familiarity stemmed from the IWC Ingenieur Automatic 40’s case. Fine-tuning the watch’s ergonomics and wearability was part of the focus for the IWC Ingenieur Automatic 40; though the 40mm diameter was retained, more importantly, the lug-to-lug distance was refined to 45.7mm for increased wearing comfort. A brand new case construction is on the cards, too, as the bezel is now screwed onto the case with the redesigned polygonal screws, while a newly engineered middle-link attachment aids the integrated bracelet to flow seamlessly from the case.
Changes to the dial were most telling when comparing the IWC Ingenieur Automatic 40 with its predecessor. A refreshed grid dial pattern with outlines around the larger watch hands, hour indices and date aperture gives the dial a pronounced boldness. Four iterations of the IWC Ingenieur Automatic 40 are released, a trio in stainless steel with black, silver or aqua dials and a titanium variant with a grey dial.
Powering the IWC Ingenieur Automatic 40 is the IWC manufactured 32111 calibre, which of course, is protected by a soft iron cage widely regarded as the Ingenieur’s soul. Ingenieur, which means engineer in German and French, was a technical milestone for IWC when it first launched. The component protects the movement from magnetic wave interference and soon caught up with professionals before gaining cult status with the watch-collecting community. Of the many noteworthy hits streaming out of Watches & Wonders 2023, much of the plaudits will be reserved for IWC for hitting a home run with the IWC Ingenieur Automatic 40.
This story about the IWC Ingenieur Automatic 40 is part of this week’s Watches & Wonders 2023 round-up. Stay tuned for more updates happening throughout the week. Also, click here to catch up with our March 2023 issue.
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