So I put on my plow a couple weeks ago and got to break it in good with all the snow we got a couple weeks ago. Now the damn winch is acting up. I believe I need a new contactor, but wanted to ask here to make sure. It works fine when winding in, but to lower the plow most of the time I just get a click sound from the front of the quad. Sounds like a solenoid click. At first I just had to hit it a couple of times and it would work but now its getting worse and I know it's gonna quit when I need it most. Since they are a POS, buying another replacement will I be getting the same thing, something thats gonna break after a short amount of use or did they fix them up and make them better? I remember reading a while back about somebody using Warn parts in their Polaris winch but cant remember what parts were interchangeable. Is a Warn contactor compatible with the Polaris winch? Can you get them elsewhere besides your local Stealer? And please keep the "ditch the Polaris winch and buy a Warn" comments to yourselves cause I cant afford one just yet. LOL Thanks guys!!

 

Rowe,

If your contactor is a 4 post unit with the two small wires on the bottom... a Warn contactor should work fine (or any other 4 post contactor). The contactor simply accepts power from the battery (and acts as a relay to protect the system) and sends power to the winch to go in or out from the request sent through the signal wire on the bottom of the contactor.

I've seen Warn contactors a little cheaper on Ebay and a couple other places. They are still pretty pricey though.

Good luck.

 

just replace the contacter and most likely it will be fine. check on ebay for a cheaper one.

 

R you saying to just replace it with another OEM Polaris one Sten?

Never looked at it Dave so not sure if its the 4 post or not. The winch came with the quad so it's whatever Polaris uses. I checked the parts list and they are listing it for 100 bucks. It's always something, isnt it

 

you can use a warn contactor.How old is your winch it has a one year warranty on the winch. there are a few different styles of warn contactors and its the mounts that are usually different.
'

 

you still may want to try taking your winch apart and cleaning it(brush assembly and armature especially).you'll most likely see it's full of water. try that first ,before you spend any money. those contactor sets normally last a lifetime.

 

as the suzuki guy mentioned you can use a warn conntactor if it's the same set up as yours. if it's a simple clicking noise when you try to use it and the connections are clean tight, then it's most likely that's the issue. you can always reverse the cables from in to out to see if it works fine in that direction to make sure it's not the winch it self.

 

Rowe, I'm betting that it's a 4 post contactor. However, there are some 8 post contactors still floating around.

You should be able to pick up a Warn for around $50 bucks if you shop around. I would get the Warn contactor, or the new contactor that Viper sells before I would buy the one from PoPo.

I would find the contactor, make sure all the connections to it, the battery, and the winch are all cleaned up an tight before I would go spending the money.

It does sound like the contactor, but it could a lose/corroded connection, or it could be the Rocker switch, or even the winch itself. Do the reversing of the wires that the Polaris guy mentioned to make sure it's not the winch.

 

DCT You are spot on!! DVM comes out of my box before I condemn electrical parts.

 

I AGREE ! This should be the efirst move before you spend ANY $$$.