Rolex Kermit Review: The First Green Submariner

The watch enthusiast community has a way with nicknames, especially when it comes to Rolex. While the Crown has never embraced the proliferation of highly specified pet-names for its most popular models outright, it is a helpful shorthand for quickly differentiating between references. Especially if you, like me, have difficulty pulling reference numbers off the top of your head. We’ve already covered some of the other mean green makes from the Crown in depth, like the Rolex Hulk and the Submariner Starbucks. Today, we’re going to be wading into the weeds of the Submariner, nicknamed after the world’s most famous frog, and getting into the nitty-gritty of how it came to be, and how to differentiate it from other similar-hued Rolex watches. 

[toc-section heading="Context and History"] 

Image: Bonhams

While the history of Rolex’s most iconic can be traced back to the early 1950s, the story of the “Submariner” Kermit is a much more contemporary one. If you’re in the mood for a more in-depth historical lesson, I will refer you now to our complete guide to the Submariner here. This leg of our journey starts in 2003, a major anniversary year for the Rolex Sub. As watchmakers are wont to do, the Crown decided to celebrate the 50th birthday of the Submariner with a special anniversary edition. In a playful move that polarized the purist collectors, Rolex debuted the Submariner reference 16610LV, which was differentiated most obviously by its bright green bezel. Though Rolex has been no stranger to feeling green – Hans Wilsdorf snuck the color into marketing and brand identity as a subconscious attempt to connect the crown further with the symbolic implications of wealth and luxury – the verdant hue of the bezel stirred up quite the controversy among collectors who were married to the idea of the classic utilitarian all-black models. Early nay-sayers felt that the mixing of the green against the black dial clashed, even going so far as to argue that the new Kermit style on the block felt toy-like and cheap. 

Image: Bonhams

With the “LV” at the end of the reference being an abbreviation for Lunette Verte or (Green Window for my non-francofile readers), reference 16610LV had other distinguishing qualities, other than the green factor. The (forgive my pun) big one here was the use of the “maxi-dial,” which gets its nickname from the bolder, larger hour markers and beefier hands. Of course, other classic Submariner goodness was still at play, namely the cyclops date window at three, and the Mercedes-style hour hand, of course. Though the early reception of the Kermit Submariner was mixed, the collecting and enthusiast community would eventually come around to its unconventionality. What people were either unaware of, or maybe were tipped off to, was that the Crown was setting the stage for further toying with color with the formerly austere Submariner as its canvas. 

The production life of the Rolex Kermit turned out to be quite short. The poor Kermy Submariner lasted only seven years, from its birth in 2003 to being shelved in 2010 as the Crown shifted from the aluminum bezel inserts to its shiny new Cerachrom. But, of course, this short time span only fans the collectability fire, fueled further by its 50th anniversary status. The early Rolex Kermit Submariner models that feature the “flat-4” for the 40 on that green bezel are the most sought after on the secondary market, and more prized than the subsequent, more pointed typography on later models. But while Kermit’s reign might have been short, we likely have it to thank for all the green Submariner models that followed in its footsteps. 

[toc-section heading="Case and Wear"] 

Image: Sotheby's 

In 2020, Rolex overhauled the case of its staple Submariner, which boosted the diameter to the 41mm that we see across the collection today. But the Rolex Kermit was shelved long before this change took place. All Rolex Kermit Submariner models produced were in the 40mm size. And, because we’re in the Crown’s domain, the cases are, of course, the Oystercase formula that is Rolex’s bread and butter. Utilizing 904L Steel (which is now dubbed “Oystersteel”), key features of the Oystercase include the triplock crown system, monobloc middle case, screw-down caseback, and the pressure-fitted sapphire crystal. All of these ingredients help the Submariner achieve its quintessential dive-readiness, and the Rolex Kermit (like all modern Subs) is water resistant 300 meters. 

The Rolex Kermit models had the slimmer proportions that make for a more “vintage Rolex” feel and wear. Much of this can be attributed to the 12.5mm case profile, which is much more trim than the 13.1mm thickness of post-2020 Submariners. Of course, all of the Rolex Kermit models were paired with the classic Oyster bracelet

[toc-section heading="Dial"] 

Image: Sotheby's

As I mentioned earlier, the Rolex Kermit dial was a novelty in and of itself for its use of large luminous indices. That’s where the “maxi-dial” denotation comes in. Matching the hue of the bezel, all of those large indices are filled with bright green Super-LumiNova. Another key feature of the Rolex Kermit was that the black dial had a glossier, shinier surface than previous Submariner models. As for the typography, there were some slight revisions, with earlier Kermit models featuring more circular, rounded “Os” in the Rolex logo, which became slimmer and more oval-like in subsequent renditions. 

The green-hued aluminum bezel from which this Submariner gets its Muppet nickname is among the key identifiers across different Rolex Kermit references. The exact hue of the green underwent subtle shifts over time, ranging from a vibrant, classic green, then pivoting to a more yellow-toned green somewhere in the middle, before closing out with the darkest green shade. Again, this is where the “flat-40” vs “sharp-40” debacle comes into play. Early models featured the more mid-century-esque flat-topped 40 on the bezel, while later models became sharper and more pointed. If you come across a Rolex Kermit in the wild and want to make a guess on which reference it is, looking at the top line of the 40 is a great place to start. 

[toc-section heading="Movement"] 

Image: Sotheby's

In the movement department, the Rolex Kermit is equipped with one of the Crown’s most iconic calibers: the Caliber 3135. Originally introduced in 1988, this mechanical automatic movement is Rolex’s prized workhorse. Legendary for its durability, reliability, and easy to service, the Caliber 3135 was used across many different Rolex collections, including the Submariner Date, Sea-Dweller, Datejust, and Yacht-Master. The Caliber 3135 is COSC-Certified and Rolex Superlative Chronometer certified, meaning it meets the -2/+2 seconds per day accuracy standards. Beating at a 4 Hz frequency, this caliber has a 48-hour power reserve. This caliber has since been overthrown by the subsequent 3235 caliber.

[toc-section heading="Final Thoughts"] 

Image: S. Song Watches

To quote the actual Muppets Kermit, “it’s not easy being green.” It’s not easy being the first to set a trend, either, and you might be shelved as greener, newer watches push you out of the spotlight. But the Rolex Kermit Submariner set the stage for a more playful era of the Sub to take center stage, especially across its all-steel offerings. Now, after the initial mixed reception has subsided, the Rolex Kermit Submariner is another among the fleet of highly collectible Rolex watches, and is fetching prices exponentially higher than the price tag it debuted with. Still, depending on the reference, the Kermit Submariner has maintained a relatively steady pace in the Rolex collecting space, and is typically more attainable than the Hulk, especially for the sharp-40 models.