The Rolex GMT-Master reference 1675 was introduced in 1959 and made until 1980, a run of about 21 years that makes it one of the longest-lived Rolex references. It succeeded the original 6542 of 1954 and brought crown guards and a 40 mm stainless steel case, up from 38 mm; gold and two-tone versions were also made. It has an acrylic crystal, a date and a fourth, 24-hour hand read against a rotating bezel with an aluminium insert in red and blue, the colours behind the “Pepsi” nickname. Early examples use the automatic calibre 1565 (Phillips also catalogues a circa 1960 piece with the calibre 1560), and later ones the calibre 1575. It matters because it fixed the look of the GMT-Master for decades.

The GMT-Master was created after Pan American Airways asked Rolex for a way for its pilots to track two time zones. The 6542 used a fragile Bakelite bezel, which the 1675 replaced with aluminium. The first 1675s had sharp pointed crown guards, nicknamed “Cornino”, which gave way to rounded guards around 1964 to 1965. Dials changed from glossy black lacquer with gilt print and a chapter ring to matte black with white print, and rare variants such as the “Exclamation Mark”, “Underline” and “Double Swiss” dials exist. An all-black bezel option arrived in the 1970s. The GMT-Master is associated with wearers including Pablo Picasso, Hunter S. Thompson and Che Guevara, and with Pussy Galore in the 1964 Bond film.

Collectors regard the 1675 as the definitive vintage “Pepsi” and value early pointed-crown-guard examples with glossy gilt dials most highly; Phillips calls the lacquer dial among the most collectable in the 1675 family. At Phillips Hong Kong in 2018, a circa 1960 example with sharp pointed guards and a black lacquer dial sold for HK$225,000 against an estimate of HK$100,000 to 200,000, and another 1960 example reached HK$250,000. Later matte-dial Pepsis are more accessible: Sotheby’s sold one for 11,400 US dollars in June 2024 and puts typical prices between about 11,000 and 48,000 dollars, depending on material, condition and dial. The 1675 is no longer produced; Rolex‘s current GMT-Master II, including the red and blue Pepsi version, continues the line.