Warn VR EVO, good winch or suck it up and buy a better model?

zackcj7

zackcj7

TJ Enthusiast
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Jul 1, 2021
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Atlanta, GA
I need a new winch. My old Ramsey 8000 is just too slow and overheats if I use it too much. I was going to buy a Warn M8000. But Warn is doing a $150 rebate on the VR EVO series. That makes it almost half the price of a M8000.

So the question is who has experience with the VR EVO series? Any issues?

I know the M8000 is a superior product, but is it $400 worth of better than the VR EVO?
 
I have an EVO on my Jeep and my wife has one on her JKU. Never had an issue. I was worried about it so I upsized on both. If I were to do it again, I'd pay the extra $400 for the superior model.
 
Viking Jeeper said:
Do either of these models include or at least have the option for wireless? It's a very nice feature.
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LakeBeard said:
Both EVO's I have are wireless
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Evos are no longer available with built in wireless since they recalled them. But they do come with a coupon for one of the HUB wireless units you can order directly from Warn. There are wireless addons for most all Warn winches now M8 included.

As for Evo vs M8 personally I would pick the M8. I like the Gen 2 VR winches a lot more and had no problem recommending them compared to the M8, but the Evo IMO is just not as good of a winch compared to the Gen 2 VR.
 
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I got my vr evo 8-s for $550 new. I was going to get the m8 but it was more expensive and I need to buy other jeep parts.

I don’t know if it’s a gen 2 vr? how do we find out?
 
06TJ35's said:
I got my vr evo 8-s for $550 new. I was going to get the m8 but it was more expensive and I need to buy other jeep parts.

I don’t know if it’s a gen 2 vr? how do we find out?
Click to expand...

Gen 2 is the VR winch before the EVO came out. Evo would be considered gen 3 but it technically is a different design.
 
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Northridge has the VR EVO 10 with steel cable for $445. That is not counting the $150 rebate. That is pretty damn cheap if this is a decent winch. I know it's made in China and not the same quality as their made in the USA line. But it's probably still an improvement over my 15 year old Ramsey REP 8000.
 
I think the M8 looks more at home on a TJ anyway.

I do wish they offered a rope cover like the one for the Zeon, on some of the less expensive winches. I'm not a fan of bulky winch covers but it seems like keeping all the grit from the road out of the rope wouldn't be a bad thing.

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freedom_in_4low said:
I think the M8 looks more at home on a TJ anyway.

I do wish they offered a rope cover like the one for the Zeon, on some of the less expensive winches. I'm not a fan of bulky winch covers but it seems like keeping all the grit from the road out of the rope wouldn't be a bad thing.

View attachment 478150
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And why do I not have this cover on my Zeon 😯
 
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zackcj7 said:
Northridge has the VR EVO 10 with steel cable for $445. That is not counting the $150 rebate. That is pretty damn cheap if this is a decent winch. I know it's made in China and not the same quality as their made in the USA line. But it's probably still an improvement over my 15 year old Ramsey REP 8000.
Click to expand...
Here's mine in action

https://clipchamp.com/watch/GnETTL8bN0d
 
Have the vr evo 10s on my jeep for almost exactly 2 years now. The remote got recalled so now I only have a wired remote which isn’t the end of the world but it was nice to have. This past week I went to just tighten the line on it and it’s not working as of now. I’ll get a click on both in and out settings then after a few clicks nothing. Called warn and they send me a a random home made video off YouTube to test the contactors and then come back to him to further diagnose the issue. A little upset that 2 years in with not a lot of use and when I did use it I was always trying my best to not over use it or burn the motor but having the remote and now the whole winch go down and then just get told figure it out upset me. If I didn’t have this issue this past week I would have recommended it as it did work in -15 degrees in snow or summer when I did need it to get unstuck.

Edit: I have the cover that covers the whole thing and sits perfectly at the level of my bumper so the synthetic line never got dirty beside some dust in the summer so that is nice.
 
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zackcj7 said:
Northridge has the VR EVO 10 with steel cable for $445. That is not counting the $150 rebate. That is pretty damn cheap if this is a decent winch. I know it's made in China and not the same quality as their made in the USA line. But it's probably still an improvement over my 15 year old Ramsey REP 8000.
Click to expand...

Yes it would probably be better than an REP8.
 
The4bangertj said:
Have the vr evo 10s on my jeep for almost exactly 2 years now. The remote got recalled so now I only have a wired remote which isn’t the end of the world but it was nice to have. This past week I went to just tighten the line on it and it’s not working as of now. I’ll get a click on both in and out settings then after a few clicks nothing. Called warn and they send me a a random home made video off YouTube to test the contactors and then come back to him to further diagnose the issue. A little upset that 2 years in with not a lot of use and when I did use it I was always trying my best to not over use it or burn the motor but having the remote and now the whole winch go down and then just get told figure it out upset me. If I didn’t have this issue this past week I would have recommended it as it did work in -15 degrees in snow or summer when I did need it to get unstuck.

Edit: I have the cover that covers the whole thing and sits perfectly at the level of my bumper so the synthetic line never got dirty beside some dust in the summer so that is nice.
Click to expand...

Covers have a bad habit of trapping moisture. I would inspect all the connections on the back of the motor.
 
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