IWC Ingenieur Automatic 40 draws inspiration from F1 movie prop watch

A prop watch turns into a real watch

By Nathan S.R Published April 4, 2025

IWC Ingenieur Automatic 40 Reference IW328908 — IWC Ingenieur Automatic 40 Reference IW328908 IWC / IWC

IWC just presented a new stylish watch, a limited edition Ingenieur Automatic 40, that pays tribute to the upcoming F1 movie, a film that features IWC’s branding. As the name hints, the movie’s plotline focuses on F1 motorsports and stars Damson Idris and Brad Pitt as professional F1 drivers. While Brad Pitt’s character is Sonny Hayes, Damson Idris stars as Joshua Pearce. Both characters are in the same F1 team, APXGP, which IWC sponsors. The film will be in theaters on June 27th, 2025.

Since both drivers are under IWC’s wing, Sonny Hayes will be rocking a prop IWC watch inspired by the Ingenieur SL ref. 1832, featuring a stylish green dial. While Sonny Hayes’ watch is a prop, it is the brainchild of Cloister Watch Company and IWC. The first brand deals with bespoke prop watches that closely resemble real watches.

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Sonny Hayes’s green prop watch inspired the new Ingenieur Automatic 40 Ref. IW328908—a stylish, modern watch cleverly designed to match the bespoke piece that will appear in the F1 movie, thanks to the green grid-patterned dial.

Featuring Ingenieur’s signature bezel, this model preserves the brand’s heritage with a retro design, accentuated by five screws. To create a beautiful contrast between different elements, IWC opted for gold hour markers and a gold hour hand, breathing some life into the front face.

The Ingenieur Automatic 40 Ref. IW328908 draws energy from the IWC 69385 calibre, a powerful mechanism with a 120-hour power reserve. This new model will be limited to 1,000 pieces only—a piece costs $12,900.

Former Digital Trends Contributor

Nathan has devoted his life to collecting watches, studying horology, reviewing watches, and writing about timepieces. As a…

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