Rolex Cosmograph Daytona ref. 116515

The Origins

Inarguably one of the most iconic watches in all of watchmaking, the Rolex Daytona needs no introduction. Offered as the Cosmograph since 1963 and officially christened the Daytona by Rolex in 1965, the Rolex Daytona underwent baptism by fire whereby its lack of commercial success in the 1960s later drove demand towards those earlier references amongst collectors in the 1980s who saw the value that they represented. Since then, the Daytona has consistently topped the ranks as one of Rolex’s most sought-after offerings across their entire catalogue, and today it remains as once of the hardest Rolexes to buy straight from an Authorised Dealer. Plenty of collectors will know the difficulties in getting a Daytona straight from an AD and how the Daytona was the earliest Rolex to have its own waiting list , and it was one of the first Rolexes to command a premium on the open market as a result of that waiting list.

Filled with an array of different construction materials, movements, dial colours, gem settings, case sizes and so on over the years, the Daytona has encompassed just about every design language possible since its inception, and the reference we are exploring today fuses the Daytona’s sportiness with an elegant sense of luxury that creates quite a titillating combination, the 18k Everose gold ref. 116515 on Rolex’s Oysterflex bracelet. Launched in 2017 and discontinued in 2023, the Daytona ref. 116515 was amongst the first Daytona variants to feature the Oysterflex bracelet, which had only debuted two years prior in 2015 on the Yacht-Master 40. 

While appearing like any other rubber strap, the Oysterflex is indeed not like any other rubber strap. Instead, it features fins on its reverse to allow for air and water flow underneath the bracelet, and indeed, it features a solid titanium blade that runs the length of each its halves, thus meaning it is a bracelet that has been over-engineered in every way possible, and is not just a rubber strap – the Rolex way. With this rubber strap-looking bracelet and toned-down 18k Everose gold construction, the ref. 116515 is the perfect blend of sportiness and casual luxury. 

The Case and Dial

Made of Rolex’s proprietary 18k rose gold, or Everose gold, the ref. 116515 features a 40mm diameter, as Rolex claims, that wears surprisingly neat on the wrist. Of course, given that it is offered with a relatively dark brown dial and black Cerachrom bezel, the ref. 116515, like other Daytonas from the same generation, wears small. Additionally, the fact that the Daytona is actually 38.5mm also comes into the equation. As a result, the ref. 116515 is the most universally appealing size that Rolex could have made it. Why they claim it is 40mm is anyone’s guess.

As mentioned, the ref. 116515 is offered with a beautiful brown sunburst dial.  Featuring golden inscriptions and black sunburst subdial registers with black chapter rings boasting concentric guilloche engravings, the ref. 116515’s display is the perfect piece to bring its bezel and construction colour scheme together. With luminous indices applied at each hour marker and the trio of chronograph subdials controlled via screw-down pushers at 2 and 4 o’clock on the case, the Daytona’s dial is purely function-orientated.

The Movement

Powered by Rolex’s first in-house chronograph movement, with only 201 parts, the cal. 4130 is ruthlessly efficient as Rolex stripped back its movement so as to result in a 20% decrease in number of parts when compared to the Daytona’s previous movement, the cal. 4030. This makes for a movement with longer service intervals and fewer parts to break, meaning greater reliability across the board. 

Additionally, with more space freed up due to its relatively small number of parts, the cal. 4130 can accommodate a larger mainspring than typical chronographs, and so the cal. 4130 boasts a 72-hour power reserve, which is quite impressive given the cal. 4030 before it only had 50 hours, which was impressive too at the time. All in all, even for a 20+ year old movement, the cal. 4130 is incredible even by today’s standards and fitting for the Daytona’s legendary legacy. While the cal. 4130 is no longer in use in the newest Daytona references; you can rest assured that the ref. 116515’s movement is up to scratch.

Market Performance

In keeping with the majority of Daytona variants, the ref. 116515 has enjoyed some rather favourable market performance over the years thanks to the intense desirability the collection commands. With long waiting lists and thus heavy premiums on the secondary market across the Daytona collection, it serves as no surprise that the ref. 116515 commands a market value in excess of its MSRP of $31500. Boasting a price premium of 32%, the ref. 116515’s market value is in excess of $41000 – an impressive gain of almost $10000.

Check out the live performance of Rolex Cosmograph Daytona ref. 116515 on The Wristcheck Index