XRC-9.5K WINCH GEN2 - SB97495

I’ve been running the Smittybilt XRC-9.5K Gen2 for a few months, and it’s been a solid performer. The 6.6 hp motor and 3-stage gear system pull hard and steady — no issues recovering my Jeep from some deep mud. Installation was straightforward, and the IP67 waterproof rating holds up in rain and creek crossings. It’s heavy, and the steel cable adds even more weight, but that’s the trade-off for durability. The remote plug feels a bit loose, so I added some dielectric grease for peace of mind. For the price, you can’t beat it — great performance, solid build, and good warranty coverage. Perfect for weekend off-roaders who want reliability without spending a fortune.

I am rating this Winch a 5 Star because it is a BEAST, and Does a WONDERFUL job. However there are several things that were not good and had to be overcome to get it to that point. This of course was annoying. The first issue was I got the Winch in and Mounted it to my 2500 Chevy Silverado Diesel. The Winch was SO big I had to make some modifications to the Winch Cradle I got from Tuff Stuff to make it fit the Curt 31042 Front trailer hitch. 2nd after I did 5 pulls with the Winch it just completely quit and would never work again. Now I did do four of those five pulls back to back. However that should NOT have been enough to kill it, but it did. So I told Amazon and they promptly sent me a new one that arrived within 2 days, which was nice. No questions were asked. I have used the new one for 10 pulls and it is VERY strong and works Amazing!! 3rd Alot of the fastener hardware is cheap Chinese screws that have the head strip out easily if you don't press it hard as an 800 lb. Gorilla can. I recommend replacing ALL fasteners with American made Stainless Steel equivalents. 4th they sent the Wrong Mounting bracket so I could not Mount the Module on the left side of the unit like I had preferred to do. Going to call SmittyBilt and see if they will send me the correct bracket. 5th So since the side mount Bracket did not have the correct fitment I had to use the center mount method. Well once installed the module, it would slide from side to side on the cross members. So I had to take it off and bend the Bracket so when mounted it would be tight and could not move. A hassle for sure but not that big of a deal. 6th the second winch that came in had a remote that would randomly bump the line back out into Spool out mode. So While I would try to wind it up the line would just start coming back out. I corrected this by taking the first Winch'es Remote and sending back the second Winch'es remote with the defective Winch. The Winch has Not had that problem at all since trading out remotes. 7th on both Units You have to bump the Remote in or out sometimes to get the clutch to engage or disengage. (Not to big of a deal just a little Quirky) 8th Finally the Free Spool is a little difficult. I am 6'-4" and a pretty strong guy, However I have to really put the Muscle into it and really lean all my weight into pulling the line to get it off the drum. I know that was alot, but if you can get past these quirks as I did the Winch is actually quite Outstanding. The main thing is I think SmittyBilt REALLY needs to up their game on the Quality control department, as well as upgrading ALL fastener hardware. I have loaded vehicles onto trailers, pulled up stumps and destroyed a mobile home with this Winch. it is Very Stout. I will come back and give it a 6 month review when that time comes. IF this unit ends up dying in that time.... I will get it fixed, sell it, and buy the Most expensive Warn I can find. I hope it Will not come to that though..... and by all the other reviews I have seen.... I dont think it will. I say Give this Winch a try You Might end up liking it.

UPDATE: 5-2025: this winch is still kicking and pulls like a champ. Sounds pretty bad these days but hasn't lost any pulling power. We've had this thing under water numerous times and it's had a rough life with no end in sight! The winch itself is a monster on my little jeep. Plenty of pulling power and always comes through. Used this winch at least 100 times and it still functions as good as it did on day 1. The only cons I have are: The wires to the remote are starting to pull away from the wire shroud at the winch side connection. May need to be repaired soon. Also the rope that came with it worked great and help up well when winching just myself. I recently had to winch out a full size Dodge Crew Cab and broke the rope that came stock. I would say better care for the rope and better rigging may have prevented this since the rope had frays and looked rough from continuous usage. I was impressed when the rope snapped, there was no slingshot effect and it didn't pose any harm to the people or vehicles standing around. I will always use a synthetic rope for this reason alone Otherwise it's very power demanding (As with ANY Winch) if you are considering adding a winch, consider upgrading your power options. I have seen guys left hanging from chain store winches that cost just a fraction less than these. This is a good winch that I have put to the test before making this review.

I couldn't say how happy I am with this winch with only words. You would have to come see it in person here in Colorado. Since buying it, I have used it only 2 times. First time was just after I put it on...the directions say to un-spool it all and re-spool it up. I used my girlfriend's Grand Cherokee to do so. Now, with it being in neutral and being pulled up a very slight grade, it wasn't anything spectacular, but I will say that I spooled all of it up and the winch NEVER got hot! I didn't stop once! My Badland 9,500lb winch got hot and shut off doing the same thing. Second time I used it was to straighten a trailer out that had been jackknifed. Bent the frame that holds in the load and also the tongue. I used my winch and my tree saver to tie it up and it didn't hesitate! Didn't even think twice about it. I had other plans for the winch as well. I wanted a wireless kit and an in-cab solution. I spent $75 for the in cab controller from Prime4x4.com and the $15 wireless kit from here off Amazon. I have a review over for the wireless kit here ( https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00JKE84X2/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 ). With that being said, the only problem I have is with the mounting of the solenoid box over the motor. The 3mm Alan key stripped out 1/4 of the screws. It gave replacements of the same size so no worries. Also, while mounting it over the motor, the 3mm Alan key was a tough thing to screw in. I recommend installing the bracket to the box, then the wires, then the box to the winch. I bought the in-cab controller so I could have the controls inside if ever needed. Also to drive as I winch. Now, I know what you're thinking..."The winch remote is long enough to go from the cab to the front bumper on most vehicles!" and you're right, it is. But I'd prefer to not have to get out and go try to find the remote then plug it in then do all that. I LOVE being able to switch the safety on and start un spooling from the comfort of my driver's seat. It was also a way better way to add the wireless kit and not have it spool when I walked around (has a key chain remote as well). I have to have the switch on to use the in cab and the wireless. By the way, BLUE wire is out and GREEN wire is in for the winch! Reason I chose this winch...Well, I used to have a Badland winch on my XJ and it did alright. Price was $298.45 PLUS $49.49 for shipping. Now, I had a $50 Amazon gift card to use. So shipping would have been covered. BUT then I found this winch. Compared to the Badland winch it has 40' more line, 500lbs more pulling capacity, free shipping, and is waterproof with a 6.6hp motor! When it was all said and done, the choice was simple: Smittybilt winch. I ended up with the winch, a tree saver, and a cover for $305. (Tax was $15 for me since I live in Colorado) It'san awesome winch for the every other day wheeler. Don't expect to be pulling yourself up all day though. Not made for that. But it will get you out of a bind!

I have had this winch on my truck for about a week now and havet needed it yet but when I do I will post again and give a useful review, the only reason I didn't give this winch 5 stars was that when I received it, the box that the winch was in was inside another box and both boxes were destroyed to the point that the driver that delivered it to me had to hand me small bags of items that was supposed to be inside the box. The packaging was completely inadequate for the weight of this winch. Now to be fair i am pretty sure that the company did not ship it out this way and all the damage to the boxes was done by UPS. But for future reference the company should know that it will be torn up during shipping and do a bit more to try and make sure all parts and bags get to the customer like by adding a few more layers of outer boxes. Besides that I did play a bit with the winch after it was installed and I have a 1986 Chevy C/K Scottsdale 4x4 on big mud tires and decided that I would try and pull my truck uphill to check the winch. Long story short, it worked like a dream. Smooth and didn't even bog down when I added some items under the tires for a bit more testing. This winch is strong and well worth the money. One more reason for the 4 star instead of 5 was that this winch needs a keychain remote to go with it. Because with me sitting in my truck i have to keep my arm outside the window and almost lean out to be behind the wheel and work the winch. ==Pro's== Strong, durable winch Great Price Easy to install Easy to use Looks great ==Cons== No wireless remote Packaging was destroyed when it got to me, so suggestion to the company is to add a few more layers of boxes around the main box. I purchased this winch with my own money and did not get any discounts or free items from Amazon or Smittybilt. So this review is just to make sure that everyone gets an unbiased opinion on the winch.

Installing it I got that feeling this is a high quality piece of gear. Right up until it's one black eye, more on that in a minute. It's heavy, well made, well thought out. I've already worked it way harder pulling up weed trees than most folks ever would, including me, unsticking vehicles. I've had to use a snatch block as I was over loading it and it handled this type of load in stride. As far as installation goes you have to understand one reason it's got such a low price is it's packaged so one size attempts to fit all. Some, like me, the cables will be too long... some too short. It's easy to customize or have a pro put it in. No way they can please everyone at this price. Pros: Shipped/delivered as promised. I can't say that often now days Installation was drama free with realistic expectations Instructions were adequate Easy to operate Pulls like a Clydesdale heading toward the feed bag Excellent attention to detail, magnet in remote is one quality example Cables are copper welding quality, didn't expect this Cons... no Con there is only one C'mon Smitty, that over the cable mounting of the control head is a joke and boder line dangerous. Your other mounting options are equally poor. You can do better than this with this great product. I'm going to extend my cables and mount mine in the engine compartment. No big deal. Would I buy it again? Heckin Yes! This might be my all time favorite Amazon value since 2006. Thank you Smitty

Awesome affordable winch, and cheap shipping to Hawaii! I installed this 9500lb winch onto my 2006 Nissan Xterra Offroad. The installation is very simple with the instructions given. Both the wiring and the clocking of the gear housing was simple as pie. The winch came boxed up really well to avoid damage during shipping. Utilizing both Styrofoam and multi-layer cardboard, the winch came undamaged all the way to Hawaii. The winch is very heavy, so be careful when moving the box around. I mounted the solenoid relay box inside of the bumper and relocated the remote connector onto the grille. The handheld remote has a magnet on the end, to just stick it onto a metal surface, like your fender or bumper. Would've been cool if the surface was rubberized, to prevent scrataching and marring of the surface you stick it onto. Not a deal breaker tho. The connector is not engineered right for the application. The source-side connector is composed of male pins. This is a no-no. Source side should always be female to prevent objects from going inside and shorting the circuitry out.

purchased this back in 2015 (and yes, with synthetic ropes) but only installed it this year after i bought (and installed) an ARB off-road bumper, dobinsons springs and the matching ironman shocks (to handle all the weight) on my J90 landcruiser prado - front and rear. had to do some minor re-engineering on the bumpers to ensure i can maximize the winch (in terms of strength) and it works great! pulled up my sedan up a 30 degree incline for 20 feet or so without a hitch while my car was not flat straight with the other vehicle. only thing i am wishing for is a remote (wireless) control attachment so that i can operate it from the inside of the vehicle. unlike some other winches, this does not come with wires (nor switches) to be operated from inside the vehicle (unless you run the connected control all the way to the inside of the vehicle). if there would be such an attachment, i would buy it in a hearbeat! it performed as advertised. i just could not install the cover (yes, i also bought one) due to space constraints on the install - my bad. this will be a great rescue vehicle now specially in the philippines... it did not come with a sticker for me to put on my bumpers but had one manufactured anyway!