Any Warn VR Series Experience?

Scott B.

Scott B.

Adventurist
I've been winch shopping.

For the past several years, I figured when the time came, I would get a Zeon 10S - new design, water resistant, efficient (more or less) motor, etc. However, after seriously evaluating my needs/use, I have decided that the Zeon is more than I need. And, aside from the cost, the winch is large. I am concerned about how it will fit inside my bumper.

Warn still makes the M8000, and it carries a reasonable price. However, I need more capacity than 8K pounds.

Warn also builds the XD9 and the 9.5XP-S, either of which I would like. However, they are priced not to sell - both are more expensive than the Zeon.

Which brings us to the VR line. Unfortunately, they are made in China. However, they do carry the Warn warranty. Price wise and size wise, this one fits the bill. I am concerned about the country of manufacture, however. (To those naysayers, my Tacoma was manufactured in Texas.)

But I don't want to get into a "it's a global economy" discussion - in China's eye, the United States is their enemy. Like buying Citgo gas, I hate helping finance those that wish to do us harm.

Stepping off my political soapbox (which I had no intention of climbing on), does anyone have any practical experience with the VR series? Do they work? Are they good quality? Are they reliable?

Suggestions for any other winches to look at?

Thanks.
 
I have a gen 1 VR-8. I’ve had zero issues with it. When I bought it Warn considered it there budget line. Now they consider the VR line fheir standard line, which says a lot to me. The new Gen 3s will be out around June or Kuly just FYI. So if you can wait I’d hold off for those.
 
Thank you for the input. That is good to hear.

I was hoping to install the bumper/winch before my trip to Cali in May.

Something else to consider...
 
Optimistic Paranoid said:
Ah, but if you'll pardon my cynicism, do we know if the Gen 3 will be an improvement, or if Warn is finding ways to manufacture them more 'economically'?
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They are to be an upgrade. I can’t say what yet as I’m not allowed too. What I can say is they are trying to get the VR closer to the Zeon in performance.
 
I've seen one (so not statistically significant) failure on a VR 10K, but I arrived after it died, so I can't tell exactly what happened. It locked up. Would not run or free spool in either direction, but it had been put through the ringer. The pull was easily in excess of 10K. The recovery was on a Jeep bogged to the frame rails in a tidal flat. They desperately needed to do some digging, but were too lazy/panicked to take their time and figure it out. It was lucky the winch was all they broke. I got called after they broke the VR10 and buried the Jeep it was on. We got both Jeeps out with a Zeon 8-s, but there was also a lot of digging and two snatch blocks involved, so it wasn't a comparable load.

The Zeon 8-s was on my wife's Jeep in Dubai. She probably did a couple hundred trouble-free recoveries with it over a 3 year period. Mostly in the dunes, so they were usually short pulls without a lot of weight. No exposure to water at all. During the same period, the Zeon Platinum was released. I was much less impressed with the Platinum version. I saw a disturbing failure with the Platinum version. It lacks a lever to engage and disengage the clutch. They tend to shut down for thermal overload (good), but that locks out the automagical clutch so you can't release tension and re-rig. (inconvenient). We were always able to work around it, but it was annoying for the guy that paid more for a winch with a problem labelled as a feature.

The best recommendation I can give is with my own money. I have to get a winch for my wife's new Jeep ('84 CJ7) this month. It will be another Zeon, probably a 10S on the theory that it's more capacity with the same form factor and line capacity.
 
Thanks. I have seen that chart before.

The only thing that really concerns me is the Rated Load Amp Draw. The VR motor is not nearly as efficient as the Zeon one.

Everything else is fine (other than country of manufacture, which is just how it is.......)
 
Brett C said:
They are to be an upgrade. I can’t say what yet as I’m not allowed too.
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Well, I did it...

I bought a Warn Gen 2 VR 10-S over the weekend.

I compared the VR to the Zeon, read/viewed quite a few reviews/opinions, and thought really hard about what I needed the winch to do. All said, the VR should fit the bill nicely.

I should have it in hand by Thursday. Oh, and since 4WParts was having a sale, instead of a lower price, they gave me a Smittybuilt winch shackle. It claims to be rated for 20K pounds. I'm not going to find out...
 
You're going to love that Smittybuilt stuff, I've killed two bus loads of nuns so far.....

Actually the straps I bought are still in the cellophane under the seats....

And I've never seen a single nun my whole life, much less a bus load of em....
 
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