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The IWC Ingenieur Automatic 42 Black Ceramic is a stealth watch with Genta’s DNA baked into the material. But does it stand on its own? Let’s find out!

The Ingenieur dominated IWC’s 2025 Watches & Wonders releases, expanding into new sizes and materials. And, of course, there was the quickly sold-out green dial inspired by the vintage Ingenieur SL worn by Brad Pitt in F1: The Movie. But one model possibly stood apart from the rest: the 42 mm all-black ceramic Ingenieur. Not because it was louder, but because it fundamentally changed how the Ingenieur is built, worn, and perceived.

We were lucky to catch up with IWC’s CEO, Chris Grainger-Herr, who explained that developing the Ingenieur in an all-ceramic case and bracelet wasn’t as simple as remaking the watch in a different material. Ceramic is notoriously hard to work with, and it is not a case of a simple material swap. It requires a lot more attention – one reason why the Ingenieur is in a slightly larger 42 mm size.

The real achievement, he noted, was maintaining the proportions of the 40 mm model despite the shift to ceramic. As a result, one of the reasons why they are so proud of this is the fact that they were able to replicate the proportions of the 40 mm in the new 42 mm case size. Now you may be thinking, does this really matter all that much? Well, the short answer is yes.

Having visited the IWC manufacture in Schaffhausen, I can say that they take pride in perfecting their watches as an engineering-based watch company first and foremost. So getting this watch right was at the top of the list for Chris and the team at IWC.

First Impressions

For this, I have to cast my mind back a little over 12 months to when I first saw and got hands-on with the watch just prior to Watches & Wonders, and again at the fair in Switzerland last year. It was a watch that I thought they would eventually make. I was pleased to see they brought it out last year as part of their core collection for the Ingenieur.

Black ceramic is the industry’s safest starting point, but on the Ingenieur, it feels particularly coherent because the design already depends on geometry, texture, and light rather than colour. It was probably the most logical first step into the foray of ceramic Ingenieurs.

It does wear slightly differently than the 40 mm steel due to the way the ceramic fits the wrist and feels on the wrist, and I think that’s probably the largest difference — the feel of a ceramic watch on the wrist versus steel. That being said, the design rings true to the form of the Ingenieur — the case shape, styling, even the bracelet with the brushed links and the all-black checkerboard dial scream Ingenieur.

The Design

The success of this watch lives or dies by finishing. Poorly executed ceramic looks dull and plasticky; well-executed ceramic looks almost liquid and soft. IWC has achieved the latter.

The ceramic Ingenieur is crafted from black zirconium oxide ceramic that is sintered at high temperatures over two phases to ensure it is hard and flawless. The watch is beautifully satin-brushed, making the ceramic silky to the touch, which adds to the luxury of the piece. IWC has achieved this by satin-brushing the ceramic case, then sandblasting it to give the brushing that smooth, glossy effect. The edges are polished, with the same techniques applied to the bracelet and link edges, so both the case and bracelet play with the light.

From a construction standpoint, this Ingenieur is in the exact proportions as the 40 mm, just 5% larger, and to achieve this, IWC has constructed the case in three parts — the case back, case ring (middle), and bezel — all in ceramic, fitted together and secured with screws from both the back and the front.

On top of this, instead of being held by a titanium ring, the sapphire crystals on the front and the back are pressed directly into the ceramic parts, which assists in the watch being in perfect proportions. Rather than me talk more about it, I’ll let Chris Grainger-Herr explain it:

“The process we’re using is really about designing from the outside in, and we don’t normally work like that. As an example, when you do something in ceramic, you would always start from the fact that ceramic asks for slightly bulkier dimensions — everything has to be beefed up a little bit to suit the material you’re working with. Often when you look at ceramic, the tolerances and the gaps between bracelet links are a lot wider, so everything can move very freely, but it all feels a bit sort of loose and non-engineered in the hand. This is what we didn’t want to do. We didn’t want to mess with the proportions.”

“It’s a much longer process, but it worked out beautifully because by going into pure ceramic construction, with no container, and really minimising the construction tolerances on all fronts. You’ve got five functional screws from the front, five functional screws from the back, which have to go into the same bit of ceramic at the centre and all miss each other, and give you 100-meter water resistance, and make the watch stable. So they’re all huge challenges!”

“Even working on the bracelet was a challenge. To bring that into the tolerances of the steel bracelet and to make sure it doesn’t crack, make sure it all wears perfectly — it’s a longer process. The finishing as well, we pushed that to the absolute limit by brushing the entire case and all the components, then sandblasting them and doing the bevel polish on the axes on it.”

How It Wears

The black ceramic Ingenieur wears differently from the 40 mm steel version. I’ve had the privilege of wearing pretty much the entire Ingenieur collection now. From the 35 mm steel, the full gold models, the Perpetual Calendar, and now the black ceramic. All are great watches and are all designed to wear slightly better depending on your wrist size. I feel that the 40 mm steel still wears truest to form, at least on my 17.5-centimetre wrist, but with the aforementioned complexities of crafting this watch in ceramic, the 42 mm ceramic Ingenieur does have its differences on the wrist.

The case itself is fairly flat, and while the lugs curve around to join with the integrated bracelet on top of the watch, on the underside, they actually taper in the opposite direction, thinning out to the end of the lug.

The flat case architecture means the 42 mm footprint feels true to size on the wrist, with a small but noticeable gap before the bracelet drops away – more so on the side closest to the body with my wrist size and shape. Thankfully, my wrists are also slightly oval-shaped, so this somewhat negates this. But I would say that if you have a smaller wrist size, or if your wrist is less oval and a bit rounder, then this watch may not wear as flush as you would like at this size.

What I like about the black ceramic is that IWC has not taken anything away from the dial legibility. It has kept the Super-LumiNova on the hands and the indices, and even though they are finished in black steel against the black checkerboard pattern, they stand out just as well as any other watch, so does the date window at 3 o’clock, which is colour-matched to the dial, so the white numerals also stand out.

Like all full black watches, this may not be to everybody’s taste. I feel a little torn about all-black watches. I’ve said many times in the past that I am not a massive fan of them, as, for me personally, I like a more classic-looking watch, either a steel watch on a steel bracelet or on a rubber or leather strap, depending on the design and also the metal that the watch is made out of.

But for those who love a black watch, then the Ingenieur will be right up your alley, and it ticks a lot of boxes. With a fairly robust and hardy, scratch-resistant ceramic case and bracelet, it means the watch will weather the test of time fairly well. It’s extremely hard to make a scratch or dent, and it’s just a cool piece you can wear that will probably get a few questions when people notice it on your wrist. Is it a formal watch? No, it most definitely isn’t. But as a person who doesn’t wear a lot of formal attire, a watch such as this would fit into my everyday lifestyle.

On the wrist, it does look quite nice and as far as all-black watches go, this is probably up there as one of my favourites. The interplay of the light on the black brushed, and bevelled ceramic really stands out, especially on a bright sunny day. Unfortunately, the day that we were shooting this, it was less bright and sunny and more overcast and very cloudy, but you can still see how that ceramic would come to life, and does come to life, in the daylight. If you are indoors with downlights, then as you roll your wrist around, you can see the light really dancing off that ceramic.

The one thing that is missing, however, on this watch is the quick-link system that is in the steel and gold Ingenieurs. On those watches, there is a little button that you can press with a pin tool, or even a toothpick or the like, and then, using a small pin tool, you can push the pin out and slide it easily to remove the links by yourself with effectively no specific tools required.

I can only imagine that trying to implement this system inside an all-ceramic link would be extremely difficult, if not impossible, given the constraints that you have with making ceramics in the very first place. This means if you want to swap links out, you will need to take it back to your local IWC boutique or dealer to add or remove links should you need to.

If your wrist size fluctuates with temperature (mine certainly does), sizing becomes more critical without a micro-adjust or quick-link system. One reason why I have almost always needed a comfort adjustment on all the watches that I own. If you are stricken with this fluctuating wrist annoyance, then you may have to just try and size the Ingenieur at a time of year, knowing that it’ll either be slightly loose in the cooler months and maybe a little bit more snug in the warmer months.

The Movement

Inside the watch beats the IWC-manufactured 82110 calibre. This calibre is slightly different to the 32111 calibre found in the 40 mm as IWC has elected not to drop the current smaller-sized movement into the larger case. Instead, they have used the 82110, which is similar to the 82100 found in the Big Pilot 43 mm, but with the date functionality added at 3 o’clock for the Ingenieur.

The core difference is the power reserve: 60 hours here versus 120 hours in the Ingenieur 40. While the reserve drops to 60 hours, this calibre choice prioritises durability and mechanical architecture suited to the ceramic case rather than the maximum number. If this is going to be worn several times a week, then a 2.5 day reserve should be plenty.

IWC makes up for this in the movement aesthetics, though. It has given the ceramic treatment to the movement as well, with the automatic wheel and the clicks made of black ceramic, while the rotor bearing is made of white ceramic to eliminate wear. The calibre 82110 beats at 4 Hz / 28,800 VpH and has the Pellaton winding system, which allows the rotor to deliver power to the barrel in each direction.

Final Thoughts

At A$32,200, it sits within the expected range for full-ceramic integrated-bracelet sports watches from major luxury brands such as Zenith’s Defy Skyline or the Hublot Big Bang Black Magic. Yes, you can find others at a lesser price point, but you’re not getting the pedigree in those, or the same quality for that matter – and there is a difference, trust me. Not all ceramics are made equally.

Writing this review, I went back to my release article on the IWC Ingenieur 42 Ceramic. Interestingly, my closing thoughts on the piece, having spent a little time with the watch was this: “The 42 mm, while enhanced from 40 mm may not be to some people’s liking, but I’ll say from my experience with the piece, it wears smaller than the paper specs suggest. This is enhanced by the case thickness at 11.6mm and the lightness of the ceramic case.”

Now that time has passed, and I’ve had more time to spend with the watch on a daily basis, does this statement still hold? Yes, somewhat. Initially, I thought it did wear smaller thanks to the black colour as well as the lighter ceramic, but spending more time with it on the wrist, I feel like it wears more true to form, especially when compared to the 40m in steel.

I also mentioned the looks and finishing: “The combination of the satin brushing, sandblasting and high polish really makes this piece come to life, and while it is a very monochromatic watch, the light play makes it anything but ‘just a black watch’ as it will look new for many years to come, thanks to the zirconium oxide ceramic.” And I still 100% agree with this. The light play is fantastic, and the finishing makes this watch stand out.

If ceramic and stealth aesthetics appeal to you, this is one of the most compelling executions currently on the market.

Reference: IW338903

Specifications:

• Dimensions: 42mm case diameter x 11.5mm thick x 48mm lug-to-lug
• Case Material: Satin brushed, sandblasted and polished black ceramic
• Dial: Black with a checkerboard pattern
• Crystal: Sapphire Crystal with antireflective coating on both sides
• Caseback: Sapphire Crystal with smoked effect
• Movement: Automatic Cal. 82110 movement, beating at 4Hz (28,800 VpH) and pivoting on 22 jewels, black ceramic components
• Power reserve: 60 hours
• Water resistance: 100m (10 Bar)
• Bracelet: Satin brushed, sandblasted and polished ceramic with butterfly clasp

Australian Recommended Retail Price: AU$32,200

Availability: Available now from IWC Boutiques, retailers or online at IWC.com

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