Citizen Promaster NY008 Asia Limited Series Divers

By: Michael Penate

This month Citizen quietly released a new, limited collection of dive watches that build upon the often forgotten NY004 design. Unlike watches like the famed SKX007 from Seiko and Orient’s Mako series, these Citizen automatic divers are often difficult to find in the States and are typically overshadowed by the more readily available Eco-Drive Promaster divers. It’s a shame, since modern NY0040-09EE fans praise the watch for its wearability and the fact that it can trace its roots all the way back to models like the Citizen Parawater of the late 1950s. Now, Citizen is offering an updated line-up known as the Citizen Promaster NY008 Asia Limited Series, which offers a variety of new dial options and capitalizes off the previous collection’s limited military connection.

At this time, there seems to be a total of six available variants with specific versions being designated for markets in Singapore, Thailand, and Malaysia. Among the usual black and blue dials together with a Pepsi-style insert on another version, the collection also features model fitted with a fully-lumed dial (reference NY0080-12X). That’s the one I’d go for, since I’ve been looking for a NY0040 lumed dial diver that is actually pretty difficult to find. Speaking of which, while these newer models do appear similar to the NY004 variants, there are a few differences – specifically in the hour markers, dial text, hands, and crown knurling.

All versions of the Citizen Promaster NY008 Asia Limited Series watches measure in at 42mm wide, provide 200m of water resistance, and come with the awesome Citizen Caliber 8203 automatic movement. Delivering approximately 40 hours of power reserve, I think these 8200 series movements are vastly underrated and you can trace the lineage of movements like the 8203 and 8205 all the way back to 1977. You also get a cool, blacked out set of day/date discs that match well with all the available dial versions and from what I can tell, every model comes with the vented ND Limits vented rubber strap.

With the exception of the models designated for Singapore, Thailand, and Malaysia, each version of the Citizen Promaster NY008 is limited to 1,000 pieces. The watches will be exclusively sold at key retailers throughout Asia… but I’m going to do everything I can to see if I can get my hands on the lumed-dial version. To me, it’s a significant release and I hope it’s a sign that Citizen will do more to update their automatic divers and bring more variety to consumers across the globe. Prices start at around $330 USD.

Learn more at Citizen Asia Limited