Warn VR Evo 10s or 12s Feedback

[cavguy]

I am shopping around for a 10k winch and would like to see if anyone here has a long term review (or any term length will also do..) of the Warn VR Evo 10k or 12k winch and its synthetic cable?

In case you are interested my main reason for considering the Warn VR Evo series is:

1. Its budget friendly! As I only would likely use my winch a handful of timer per year (usually in winter in the mountains getting myself through sticky situations in snow). Thus, I can't justify paying Warn ZEON prices for a winch. Say $750 for the VR EVO 10s vs. $1500 for the ZEON 10s a savings of ~ 1/2!
2. I need a winch with a synthetic cable.
3. The 7 Year Electronic warranty and lifetime mechanical warranty (Same as the ZEON).
4. IP68 Rating (IP68 states the unit can be 1.5m underwater for up to 30 minutes without issue.)
5. I am not concerned with line speed.
6. I like the appearance of the Warn winch.

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[plex]

I have EVO VR 10, it is a great budget oriented winch. Made in China though, but still carry most of the Warn winch characteristic and appearance (seems you are into it). The wireless remote is so much nicer to have.

I have winched about 8-10 times, always pretension it before a trip. I use a tree in an empty parking lot to do that.

 

[cavguy]

I have EVO VR 10, it is a great budget oriented winch. Made in China though, but still carry most of the Warn winch characteristic and appearance (seems you are into it). The wireless remote is so much nicer to have.

I have winched about 8-10 times, always pretension it before a trip. I use a tree in an empty parking lot to do that.

How long have you had your VR10?

I do usually prefer to buy American, but for my use case, it seems to be just a waste to buy a made in USA ZEON when a standard duty winch will work for me.

 

[Reinen]

I have the VR10 w/ synthetic. Can't give you a long term eval of it but I see nothing to indicate that it isn't a very good insurance winch. I'd go with the Zeon if you use it much more often or professionally, but it doesn't sound like you will. The Evo seems perfectly suited to occasional insurance use.

One thing to know, Warn doesn't make a cover for the VR10 yet. However the Zeon cover will work, It will be secure, and everything can be accessed with the cover on. It's just a little looser than it should be, mostly in width.

 

[plex]

How long have you had your VR10?

I do usually prefer to buy American, but for my use case, it seems to be just a waste to buy a made in USA ZEON when a standard duty winch will work for me.

I had them for almost 2 years. I think I am in the first batch user of the new EVO VR10s, there is an old VR10s with different functionality (no wireless remote).

I have them covered in mud and hosed it off, I also have them submerged just a bit in the creek near Bonnel Road Indiana, there is absolute no issue.

 

[CaptStarboard]

I have EVO VR 10, it is a great budget oriented winch. Made in China though, but still carry most of the Warn winch characteristic and appearance (seems you are into it). The wireless remote is so much nicer to have.

I have winched about 8-10 times, always pretension it before a trip. I use a tree in an empty parking lot to do that.

I've been told the EVO's are made in Thailand, not China... can anyone confirm what the box says? Cheers! CaptStarboard

 

[plex]

I've been told the EVO's are made in Thailand, not China... can anyone confirm what the box says? Cheers! CaptStarboard

I bought the winch pre-pandemic, so it could be made in China then, and made in Thailand now. Frankly, I would prefer China if I have to choose a place oversea to make my winch.

 

[CaptStarboard]

I've been told the EVO's are made in Thailand, not China... can anyone confirm what the box says? Cheers! CaptStarboard

I stand corrected, when the winch got here, it was made in China...

 

[LCW]

China for mine as well…

 

[DesertsJL]

I don’t care what the price is. If there is a made in the USA option, that’s what I go with. Buying foreign is largely what’s gotten us into the mess that we are in today with supply line issues.

 

[Whaler27]

I am shopping around for a 10k winch and would like to see if anyone here has a long term review (or any term length will also do..) of the Warn VR Evo 10k or 12k winch and its synthetic cable?

In case you are interested my main reason for considering the Warn VR Evo series is:

1. Its budget friendly! As I only would likely use my winch a handful of timer per year (usually in winter in the mountains getting myself through sticky situations in snow). Thus, I can't justify paying Warn ZEON prices for a winch. Say $750 for the VR EVO 10s vs. $1500 for the ZEON 10s a savings of ~ 1/2!
2. I need a winch with a synthetic cable.
3. The 7 Year Electronic warranty and lifetime mechanical warranty (Same as the ZEON).
4. IP68 Rating (IP68 states the unit can be 1.5m underwater for up to 30 minutes without issue.)
5. I am not concerned with line speed.
6. I like the appearance of the Warn winch.

It sounds like you‘ve already made up your mind, but I’ll put in my two cents anyway.

Warn is an Oregon company, and I have been buying and using their winches for more than 40 years. My most recent purchase is a Zeon 10s that came with the old/original clutch lever that made it incompatible with the OEM steel bumper on my JLUR. I had to replace the old clutch lever with the new short-rotation version, but I couldn't find one of those in stock anywhere, including Warn. So I called Warn customer service again and asked for suggestions on who might have a lever in stock. They pointed me to a Warn rebuilder in Northern California that has a 50 year parts inventory. I called the guy and ended up talking to him for about 40 minutes. He didn't have the lever I needed, but he was a wealth of information on all things Warn, including winch design. He’s still rebuilding Warn winches from the 60s and 70s, and he gave me an earful on the new Chinese Warns, none of which was good.

The only Chinese Warn I had personal experience with was a Warn 2500 that came on a Polaris Ranger. That was before I learned about Warn branding “lower price point products” made in China. That winch was a POS... I had a similar experience when I bought inexpensive Danner boots to replace my 30+ year old Danner hunting boots. The Chinese versions started to delaminate after less than a year. Now I pay better attention before I purchase stuff.

I try to be a buy-American guy, but there are lots of guys on this forum who claim to have had great experiences with Chinese winches marketed by Smitty, Quadratech, Harbor Freight, and others. There are synthetic line options for all of those and others., and most of the Chinese options that don‘t have Warn plastics and stickers will be less expensive..

If you use the search engine here you’ll be able to find lots of winch brand discussion and Chinese-American debate. From where I sit, the Chinese options have trashed the Warn reputation, just as disposable Taiwanese “Sears” tools damaged the once great reputation of Craftsman.

 

[dragoneggs]

I don’t care what the price is. If there is a made in the USA option, that’s what I go with. Buying foreign is largely what’s gotten us into the mess that we are in today with supply line issues.

I've come around on that attitude as well where possible. Bought the Warn Zeon even though it isn't 100% made in USA. Very happy with it and the feeling about my purchase.

Almost all of my aftermarket purchases for my JLR have been made in USA. Generally much better quality but I have paid serious premiums.

That said... lots of people can't afford to be patriotic in this way. I can appreciate that. We are all 'guilty' as we would rather buy Amazon than support our local community so where do you draw the line? No need to respond... felt like I needed to opine... back to winches.

 

[cavguy]

It sounds like you‘ve already made up your mind, but I’ll put in my two cents anyway.
...

I actually ended up purchasing a lightly used Warn Zeon 10s for a great price locally . So far it has been good but after using it for the first time I noticed the clutch lever moves by itself under load - which is apparently a known issue with this winch.

Long story short, I contacted Warn and they first sent me a bandaid part to mitigate the movement of the clutch lever, but since I still noticed the movement after installing the part, they next sent me replacement parts to resolve the issue permanently. I have yet to have time to install them as I have to pull the winch from the bumper unfortunately...

If your curious see this thread for more info: https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/forum/threads/warn-zeon-clutch-lever-lock-retrofit.85780/

 

[JEEP4U]

https://carbonwinches.com/products/carbon-12k-12000lb-electric-winch-with-synthetic-rope

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