Not all images were able to load for printing. Please close the print window and try again. The King Seiko Vanac SLA093 and SLA095, Now on Leather Straps
Dressed in dark brown or green, the bold King Seiko Vanac becomes softer on leather straps.
Released earlier this year, the King Seiko Vanac collection came as a surprise and, in all fairness, caused quite a stir. Based on bold designs from the 1970s, the name Vanac is far from new and was revamped in a sports watch with integrated bracelet and sharp case, powered by a high-end movement derived from a Grand Seiko architecture. Now, the Japanese manufacture brings two new editions of the King Seiko Vanac, worn on leather straps and fitted with more elegant dial colour, toning things down (a bit) compared to the initial models.
As a reminder, King Seiko is the result of an internal competition between Seiko’s two production sites, Suwa Seikosha and Daini Seikosha, in order to bring the most advanced, precise and luxurious watches of the brand. The first was responsible for the creation of the Grand Seiko watches. The second site launched King Seiko. The internal rivalry between the two wholly-owned subsidiaries had led to a race to become the company’s flagship brand, and while Grand Seiko became a brand of its own (2017), the name King Seiko somehow fell into oblivion until its return in 2020. And while the most famous of these watches is without a doubt the KSK (reference 44-9990), there were many more models produced by Daini Seikosha.
During the 1970s, King Seiko released a series of watches named Vanac, models characterised by faceted cases and crystals, bold shapes and typical 1970s dials with gradient effects, lively colours and audacious markers. The return of the King Seiko Vanac was done with a series of 5 watches, all sharing the same case design, and worn on stainless steel bracelets – the purple, blue and silver SLA083, SLA085 and SLA087 (permanent collection), the golden-brown SLA089 (limited) and the ice-blue SLA091 (boutique exclusive).
As of January 2026, Seiko will add two new models to the KS Vanac range, the SLA093 and SLA095, both relying on more discreet colours for the dials and, something that drastically changes the look of the watch, leather straps instead of steel bracelets. What doesn’t change is the base platform, using the same case as previous editions of the King Seiko Vanac. This means a strongly faceted stainless steel case measuring 41mm in diameter, 45mm in length and, sadly, over 14mm in thickness – even though a lot of the thickness is due to the high-box-shaped sapphire crystal on top. There’s a screwed caseback again with a sapphire crystal, a recessed crown and a solid 100m water-resistance. It is, undoubtedly, a polarising design with a strong character, specifically with these strong, polished lateral facets. Yet the watches wear surprisingly well.
As for the dial, the style and finish have not been updated. We still have horizontal grooves in the centre framed by a gold-toned and polished ring. Next, moving up a slight step, the hour chapter ring has radial grooves and is framed by a dodecagonal golden ring. The rest is classic for the collection, but not classic in style, including bold hands and a seconds hand with a V-shaped counterweight. All elements are gold-toned, which pairs nicely with the two new dial colours, namely dark brown for the SLA093 and dark green for the SLA095. As with previous models, the “King Seiko” and “Automatic 3 Days” mentions are either too large or superfluous.
In addition to these more discreet dial colours, the new King Seiko Vanac SLA093 and SLA095 also opt for leather straps, making the watches less visually striking. Available in brown or black, these nicely integrated straps are made from sustainable leather supplied by a tannery certified by the Leather Working Group (LWG), and closed by a folding clasp.
Under the case is the Calibre 8L45, also used in the high-end Prospex Marinemaster Professional Titanium SLA081. This high-end automatic movement is based on a Grand Seiko architecture, the Calibre 9S65. A rather tall calibre measuring 6mm, it runs at a rate of 28,800vph and delivers a healthy power reserve of 72 hours. The finish is nice, with broad stripes on the plates, bridges and rotor. It’s regulated to run within +10 seconds to -5 seconds per day of deviation.
Available as of January 1st, 2026, from the permanent collection, the new King Seiko Vanac SLA093 and SLA095 are priced at EUR 3,300. For more details, please visit Seiko-Watches.com.
