I'm not trying to convince anyone to go one way or another with a specific winch company, but i'd like to give my compliments to warn for my most recent experience.

This is a 9.5TI purchased in May of 2010. To be fair, this winch has seen some serious abuse.

Here is an example: https://www.jk-forum.com/forums/stoc...marine-227764/

I pump that post on the reg. I'm proud of it.

Long of the short. The motor blew up after 5 years. I called warn, they explained that their winches dont do that. I explained that in fact this winch did. They explained that they were going to rebuild it because, as stated previously, their winches dont blow up. I shipped the winch out. Had the replacement in three days.

I've always run Warn. This is the first problem i've ever had.

Absolutely buying warn in the future.

 

Nice that they service it. My issue is that for the price, they in fact, do blow up. I've watched two Zeons blow up on the first pull and have a friend who had a cti blow on the second pull. When it comes to a winch, price isn't an issue - neither is customer service. What I care about is having a
winch that works when I need it.

I have yet to see a low cost Engo or even the upper end shittybilt fail on the trail. I'll pay whatever and I run an Engo.

This is just another data point that spending 3x the money on a Warn is not a good decision. Spend 1/3 as much for a winch that doesn't fail.

 

How much $$ was the shipping of a whole winch? Did Warn pay to ship back?

I don't see this thread going in the intended direction IMHO. I'm not hating on Warn, I won a Warn promotional key-chain LED light and a T shirt in a jamboree, that haven't failed to this date! LOL.

For a winch, I run an ENGO 12000 which I consider a decent $359 investment.

 

But the warn zeon looks so sexy on the bumper. Lol. Used to the warn winches from 4wp was the same winch from harbor freight. I have known people to get 4wp to price match the harbor freight winch because they were the same. I think they had a hookup there but they did it. Lol

 

I've used my zeon 12 a handful of times and it's worked like a champion. No complaints here.

 

I was going with a Recon winch but, went with the faster line speed of the Warn M8000. I happy so far! Will see if changes, if have to use at Uwharrie trip coming up on 23rd.

 

My warn hs9500i has been hanging off the front of my 4x4's for 15 years now. It is still pulling strong, and I know that it is still fully supported if I ever do have a problem with it. Absolutely no complaints.

Back in the day, Warn was definitely the name to get. But these days, they are getting mixed reviews, and there are many lower priced options on the market that are definitely worth a second look. If I were buying a new winch now, I would be leaning toward one of these newer, less well known names

 

I paid to ship it, they paid to return it. Couple of points to make.

1. I sincerely doubt that Warn and Harbor Freight manufactured the same winch.
2. Mechanical systems fail. I dont care what brand of winch you have, there is always a chance to have a failure. This particular failure was due to water intrusion after the jeep sat submerged overnight. The brushes got stuck in the motor, three years later.

3. As stated before, I'm not trying to sway anyone into a specific brand. I'm simply stating, that Warn went above and beyond with their customer service. It's a year waranty on their winches, and they rebuilt mine after 5 years of ownership. I told them the entire story, and they STILL didn't charge me.

I'm very satisfied with how they handled it. Say what you will, but Warn makes a pretty solid product and stands behind it.

 

Anything with moving parts will eventually fail. It's all about getting the best bang for your buck during the time in between.

 

Lol I just gave my Engo 10-s to a friend for putting my new Warn Zeon 10-s in for me(next fri) my Engo was good for a dozen pulls then died he'll get it going again ... The rope also snapped but they sent me a replacement which went with the winch to my buddy...... Really hoping tho after spending all that money on the Warn Zeon it gives me min 5 yrs of trouble free winching But who knows ..... Money's gone now lol