Winch choices

Thinking of adding a winch to my 2023 TRD OR. Looking at using the warn semi hidden winch mount bumper and either the Warn VR Evo 10 s or Superwinch SX 10SR. The warn no longer comes with a wireless controller which is something I would like to have but not a deal breaker. Wondering if anyone has experience with either of these winches. I have read pos and neg reviews on both. Also, either way I will be adding 145 to 155 lbs. to the front of the truck and am not sure how much drop that may cause in the front end. The price difference is minimal although Superwinch has a 15% off sale for the next couple of days. Any advise will be greatly appreciated.

 

I looked at both of those winches but I went with the smittybuilt 10k X20 gen 3
It checked off a lot of the boxes and has solid reviews .. warn was too expensive for the amount of times I'm likely to use it https://www.smittybilt.com/products/smittybilt-x2o-gen3-winches/

 

A aftermarket wireless remote is cheap and easy to add to a winch.

 

I installed a Warn VR Evo 10s on mine earlier this year. The Warns DO come with a wireless remote. The last couple we have ordered for customer rigs in the shop had wireless remotes.

 

i'll re-post my reply to the last winch thread much of it applies here as well. i really don't believe there's a significant advantage to any name-brand winch anymore...

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/winch-needed-for-fab-fours-matrix-bumper.836381/

 

I’ll throw in my .02.

I put a Warn Evo 10 in a SSO Slimline Bumper about a year ago. Warn was in the middle of the recall for the wireless remote, but I wasn’t aware of it.

Due to the lack of remote (they had stopped packing it in with the winch), they were giving a $100 rebate which I used to buy their Bluetooth add- on that worked with their app. Optionally, you can unplug the BT add-on and plug in the wired remote they provided with the winch.

I’ve had a handful of opportunities to use the winch and BT add- on, and it hasn’t left me out there yet- and I’m frequently out solo.

I didn’t measure the suspension drop from stock truck to SSO and Evo 10, I’m sure there was some. Braking/ steering seems the same also- although there’s probably more nose dive than before.

Good luck with your decision.

 

Thanks for all the imput. One more thing. I have seen posts about having to add an extra support bracket when mounting a winch bumper on a Tacoma as the mounting points where the crash bumper comes off is not strong enough for hard pulls. Is this BS or has anyone had problems with the mounting points bending?

 

You'd probably be fine with a fairly straight pull, but reinforcement brackets that wrap around the sides of the frame rails seem to be recommended.

 

Read all about it here:

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...nforcement-brackets-2005-plus-bumpers.612276/

 

Has anyone used the BAMF brackets with the Warn semi-hidden bumper? Modifications required?

 

I spoke to a guy calling himself an engineer at SSO about this topic. His claim is that because of SSO’s design, the reinforcement brackets aren’t required.

That said, I haven’t compared SSO’s mounting to any other company’s bumper mounting, but it seems to my non- engineer brain that additional support/ reinforcement couldn’t hurt- particularly on a hard pull.

I have looked at some of the bolt on brackets that are available and had planned to add them, but life has gotten in the way of my plans lately.

 

Harbor freight special

 

I looked at both of those as options, but ended up fitting a Come Up 9.5. Extremely happy with the decision!
https://comeupusa.shop/products/seal-slim-9-5rs-12v-winch

Cheers

 

I put an open road 4x4 13k winch in my c4 fab lo pro bumper and it’s been great for me so far. I do have the reinforcement brackets installed. Warranty is great as well and less than $500.

 

I've not seen a Tacoma that has seen a good deal of winching not bend the plates welded onto the frame rails; a complete failure I have not seen.

If I were to do it again, I once saw a 1/4" plate that went over the three studs and then welded to the original plate; iirc the three studs may have been removed too and larger bolts added in their place. I would use it over all the other wrap around added brackets I have seen. Sorry do not have the producer of the product available at hand.

 

My Warn VR died a few years ago. I bought a Harbor freight Apex 12k with synthetic line. While I warrantied the Warn. That was 3 years ago. Apex is still on my truck and been great. I’ve used it for a couple dozen pulls.