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Turquoise Dial
One of the most striking new releases of the year, this latest Rolex Daytona 126518LN is stunning.
Expert Review
Read the full article: Video: Unboxing the Rolex Daytona 126518 Yellow Gold Tiff...
Rolex Daytona 126518: Yellow Gold Tiffany Dial on Oysterflex
When Rolex showed the yellow gold Daytona with the turquoise dial on Oysterflex at Watches and Wonders 2025, the early reaction was lukewarm, ours included. Another Daytona, another dial swap. Then it landed in the shop, and the reaction we get showing it to people in person has been the opposite of the reaction to the press photos. This is one Daytona that reads completely different on the wrist than it does on a screen, and it climbed from overlooked release to the Daytona everyone asks about.
Watch the full unboxing
Table of Contents
The 126518 in its Rolex box, turquoise dial on the yellow gold Oysterflex.
Case Construction and Proportions
It is a 40mm case in solid 18k yellow gold, right around 12.2mm thick, with roughly 47mm from lug tip to lug tip. On the wrist that reads as presence without bulk. The lugs curve down and the case sits flat, the way a Daytona is supposed to sit. It weighs about 160 grams, a little over a third of a pound, so you feel the gold, but it stays balanced enough to wear all day.
Side profile: polished gold case, ceramic bezel edge, and the strap tucking into the lugs.
We put the calipers on it ourselves. The official diameter is 40mm.
The Tiffany Dial: Turquoise Against Gold
Rolex's spec sheet calls the dial turquoise blue. Everyone who picks it up calls it Tiffany. It is a matte lacquer, a solid saturated turquoise rather than a metallic shimmer, and that bright color against the warm yellow gold is what makes the watch work. It reads a lot stronger in person than it does in the press photos.
The matte turquoise dial against the warm yellow gold.
The three black sub-dials sit at 3, 6, and 9 o'clock and break up the turquoise, which also keeps the chronograph counters easy to read. The hands and applied markers are gold, so the turquoise and the gold tie together instead of fighting each other.
Black sub-dials at 3, 6, and 9, gold hands, and the red DAYTONA signature.
Black Ceramic Bezel
The bezel is black Cerachrom ceramic with a gold tachymeter scale molded in. It frames the dial and locks in with the black of the sub-dials and the strap, so the color and the gold get to do the talking. The practical side is that ceramic does not scratch or fade the way an old aluminum insert would.
Black Cerachrom tachymeter bezel with the gold scale, meeting the polished case.
The Oysterflex Strap
The watch comes on the Oysterflex. It looks like a rubber strap, but there is a flexible metal blade, a titanium-nickel alloy, inside the elastomer, so it wears with the security of a metal bracelet and the comfort of rubber at less weight. It closes on a solid gold Oysterlock folding clasp. On a gold Daytona the black strap does a lot of work, cutting the shine so the watch is just as easy to wear with a T-shirt as with a jacket.
On the wrist the 40mm case wears with presence but never feels oversized.
The gold Oysterlock folding clasp that secures the Oysterflex.
Caliber 4131 Movement
Inside is the caliber 4131, Rolex's current automatic chronograph movement. It runs a vertical clutch, so the chronograph starts and stops cleanly with no jump in the seconds hand, and it holds a 72-hour power reserve. It carries the Superlative Chronometer rating, which Rolex certifies to within -2/+2 seconds a day. Water resistance is 100 meters, with screw-down pushers and a screw-down crown keeping the Oyster case sealed.
Superlative Chronometer, Officially Certified Cosmograph, under the crown.
Technical Specifications
| Reference Number | 126518 (126518LN) |
|---|---|
| Model | Cosmograph Daytona |
| Case Material | 18k Yellow Gold |
| Case Diameter | 40mm |
| Case Thickness | ~12.2mm |
| Lug-to-Lug | ~47mm |
| Weight | ~160 grams |
| Bezel | Black Cerachrom Ceramic, Tachymeter |
| Dial | Turquoise Blue Lacquer (Tiffany), Black Sub-Dials |
| Strap | Oysterflex (Elastomer over Titanium-Nickel Alloy Blade), Gold Oysterlock Clasp |
| Movement | Rolex Caliber 4131 (Automatic Chronograph) |
| Power Reserve | 72 hours |
| Certification | Superlative Chronometer (-2/+2 sec/day) |
| Water Resistance | 100 meters |
The Verdict
Rolex did not reinvent anything here. They took the Daytona everyone knows and swapped in a dial that changes the whole feel of the watch. That is the surprise. In photos it looked like a footnote release. In person it is one of the Daytonas people ask to try on first, and it looks better than the renders led anyone to expect.
The turquoise is what sells it in person.
Rolex only released this in 2025, so buying one new from an authorized dealer is not realistic right now. Retail was set at roughly 34,700 CHF at its 2025 launch, per Rolex, and the examples that actually change hands come through the grey market above that. The one we have is listed on the site.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the reference number for the yellow gold Tiffany Daytona?
It is the Rolex Cosmograph Daytona reference 126518, sometimes written 126518LN. The LN denotes the black Cerachrom ceramic bezel. This is the yellow gold Daytona on the Oysterflex strap, released in 2025.
Is the dial really Tiffany blue?
Rolex's official name for the color is turquoise blue. It is a matte lacquer dial widely nicknamed Tiffany because of the shade. The spec sheet says turquoise, but the Tiffany nickname is what stuck.
What movement powers the Daytona 126518?
The Rolex caliber 4131, an automatic chronograph with a vertical clutch and a 72-hour power reserve. It holds the Superlative Chronometer rating, which Rolex certifies to within -2/+2 seconds a day.
How big is it and how much does it weigh?
The case is 40mm across and about 12.2mm thick, roughly 47mm lug to lug, and it weighs about 160 grams in solid yellow gold. It wears with presence but stays comfortable all day on the Oysterflex.