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How to Install a UTV Winch

By Kavan Wright | How-To on October 4, 2018
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A 6000 lb black ops winch

If you don’t have a UTV winch installed on your side-by-side, you need to do it before your next ride. Whether you’re stuck in a ditch, in the mud, or on a log, a good winch is your get out of jail free card. If you just don’t don’t know how to install a UTV winch, you’re in the right place.

We’re here to make that intimidating wiring seem easy and to walk you through the steps to get it done.

But before we get into all that, let’s cover the basics.

Choosing The Right UTV Winch to Install

The first step is always to pick the appropriate winch for the job. A 2500 lb. winch is an ideal ATV winch—small, affordable, and easy to use. A 3500 lb. winch works great on ATVs and most small UTVs. However, these winches might start to bog down if you’re buried in deep mud, climbing over rocks, or running a larger vehicle like a four-seater.

If you’ve got a big machine sporting some extra accessories, you’ll probably be better served by a 4500 lb. or 6000 lb. winch. The added weight of bigger tires and hefty suspension mods will pretty much guarantee you’ll need at least a 4500 lb. winch. And if you plan on hauling your buddies when they break down, you might as well get a 6000 lb. winch just to be sure.

A 12,000 lb. winch is for the biggest of the big. Most people don’t need a winch this size. For those that do—you know who you are.

CHOOSING THE RIGHT WINCH MOUNT

Okay, so now that you’ve figured out which winch to get, you need to get it mounted. You can’t finish your UTV winch install without a winch mount plate or a winch-ready bumper.

You can easily find either on the SuperATV website by selecting Winch & Winch Mounts or Bumpers from the category options, and then filtering based on your specific needs. Just note that bumpers that are winch ready will be called “Winch Ready” bumpers. If it doesn’t say “Winch Ready,” you can’t mount a bumper to it!

If you’re in the market for a bumper along with a winch, a bumper with a built-in winch mounting plate is exactly what you need. Mounting a winch to it is a breeze and the free spool knob is usually more accessible than if it were mounted inside your chassis with a winch mounting plate—handy for when you’re buried in mud.

If you decide to go with a winch mounting plate, just make sure it’s compatible with the winch you need by checking the bolt pattern. SuperATV’s 2500 lb. and 3500 lb. winches both have a 3.0” x 4.87” bolt pattern (76mm x 124mm.), and the 4500 lb. and 6000 lb. winches both have a 3.0” x 6.6” bolt pattern (76mm x 168mm).

How to Install a Winch and Winch Mount on a Polaris Ranger Full-Size

Let’s walk through the steps to install a winch and mount. These steps will be identical whether you’re installing a SuperATV Mount on a Ranger XP 1000, Ranger XP 900, or Ranger XP 570. These are the most common vehicles people mount a winch to.

Here’s how to install a SuperATV Winch and Winch Mount on Full-Size Polaris Ranger.

  1. Remove the bumper from the machine. For 2018 Ranger XP 1000 models, the stock plow catch must also be removed.
  2. Mount the SuperATV winch to the winch mounting plate and finger tighten the four M8 x 25mm bolts included with your winch. Once you’re sure of the winch’s orientation and fit, tighten the bolts down.
  3. Take the winch assembly and bracket and mount it on the Ranger using the four M10 x 20mm bolts provided. Loosely tighten at first so that you can make sure everything is aligned. The Nylock nuts that came with your mount are paired with the lower two M10 x 20mm bolts. Tighten all four bolts to snug.

You’re done with the easy part of your UTV winch install! All that’s left is the wiring.

How to Wire a Black Ops Winch

Now that you have the winch plate mounted and tightened up, it is time to wire the winch. Follow the diagram below to make sure you’ve got it right. If you swap the positive and negative wires, the winch will spool out when you press “in” and spool in when you press “out.” It’s not the end of the world, but it’s still nice to get it right the first time.

A Black Ops Winch wiring diagram to help you with your UTV winch install.
Our solenoid is color coded to make wiring as easy as possible. Following this diagram will tell you where everything goes and following the steps below will give you more details. Keep in mind that an in-line fuse is not needed or recommended for our winches.
Photo by SuperATV

Here are step-by-step instructions for installing your winch on a Full-Size Polaris Ranger.

  1. Mount the solenoid in an easy-to-access location. We recommend somewhere under your UTV’s hood. This will give you easy access to your Ranger’s busbar.
  2. Connect the red wire to the red terminal on the solenoid and run it to the hot terminal on the bus bar.
  3. Connect the black wire to the black terminal on the solenoid and run it to the ground terminal on the busbar.
  4. Connect the yellow wire from the winch to the yellow post on the solenoid and the blue wire from the winch to the blue post. Make sure to tighten all of the connections, but do not overtighten.
  5. Connect the male end of the rocker switch to the female plug coming from the solenoid. Make sure to tighten the connectors by using the cap screw on the metal ends.
  6. Locate your UTV’s 12V key on the power source. This should be in the busbar under the hood. Using the provided connectors and wire, connect the red 12V switch wire to the UTV’s keyed power source.
  7. Mount the rocker switch in your dash.
  8. Install the fairlead. This allows your synthetic rope to spool in and out without fraying and it cleans debris off the line. Models like the Ranger XP 1000, 900, and 570 require the fairlead to be mounted to the bumper. Other models may mount directly to the mounting plate or elsewhere.
  9. Run the the rope through the fairlead and attach the clevis hook and baffle ring.

After you’ve finished installing everything, you can reattach any trim and/or bumper parts.

If you’re looking for even more precise winch installation instructions, check out our full-length UTV winch install video.

Congratulations! Your winch is now installed and you’re ready to get dirty!

RELATED CONTENT: Black Ops Winches24 installation262
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21 Comments

  1. Avatar for Chuck Chuck says:
    December 29, 2020 at 6:51 pm

    Is this winch protected by a fuse? I did not see it mentioned in the instructions.

    Reply
    • Avatar for Tyler Lichlyter Tyler Lichlyter says:
      December 30, 2020 at 10:21 am

      Hey Chuck, thanks for reaching out! No, our winches do not include an in-line fuse. Thank you for the support!

      Reply
  2. Avatar for SCOTT M SMITH SCOTT M SMITH says:
    April 4, 2021 at 2:22 am

    Is an in line fuse recommended for a super atv winch?

    Reply
    • Avatar for Tyler Lichlyter Tyler Lichlyter says:
      April 5, 2021 at 1:40 pm

      Hey Scott, thanks for checking in! No, you do not need an inline fuse for our winches. Thanks for the support!

      Reply
    • Avatar for Mike White Mike White says:
      June 16, 2021 at 2:21 pm

      Hi Scott, If fused… it would be a hell of a fuse since the winch I just purchased can pull up to 278 amps from the battery. That’s the reason SuperATV says no fuse is required. No winch manufacturer suggests inline fuses.

      Reply
  3. Avatar for Larry Wagner Larry Wagner says:
    April 24, 2021 at 2:13 pm

    Where are the instructions with the winch. What hardware goes to what?
    I am just at the point to mount the solenoid. What hardware do I use!!!
    The instructions for the Super ATV rear window were horrible as well!!
    Horrible!!

    Reply
    • Avatar for Tyler Lichlyter Tyler Lichlyter says:
      April 26, 2021 at 1:50 pm

      Hey Larry, what machine do you have? Once I know this, I can send you a more comprehensive guide. Our YouTube channel is full of great installation videos. Check it out: https://www.youtube.com/user/SuperATVMedia/search?query=winch%20install

      Reply
  4. Avatar for CALVIN SOILEAU CALVIN SOILEAU says:
    May 20, 2021 at 4:45 pm

    Does the rocker switch have to be installed for the winch to work with the wireless remote?

    Reply
    • Avatar for Tyler Lichlyter Tyler Lichlyter says:
      May 21, 2021 at 10:17 am

      Hey Calvin! The wireless remote should still work, even if the rocker isn’t installed. Thanks for checking in!

      Reply
  5. Avatar for Jeff warner Jeff warner says:
    June 9, 2021 at 8:22 pm

    Trying to hard wire toggle switch to seleniod can anyone tell me what red wire goes to the white wire coming out of seleniod

    Reply
    • Avatar for Tyler Lichlyter Tyler Lichlyter says:
      June 10, 2021 at 8:37 am

      Hey Jeff, thanks for checking in. I’m not sure what white wire you’re speaking of. Can you get some pictures and send it over to us at sales@superatv.com? Our customer service team should be able to help you out. Just make sure to provide any helpful info you can, as well as your original question. Thanks!

      Reply
  6. Avatar for joe joe says:
    August 13, 2021 at 2:28 pm

    does the rocker switch just give power to the winch or does it raise and lower it like the wireless remote

    Reply
    • Avatar for Tyler Lichlyter Tyler Lichlyter says:
      August 16, 2021 at 3:36 pm

      Hey Joe! The rocker switch will allow you to push the rope out or back in. Thanks for tuning in!

      Reply
  7. Avatar for Kory thompson Kory thompson says:
    September 8, 2021 at 5:15 pm

    Can I just wire the red and black power cables to my auxiliary power under the hood? 2021 rzr turbo 4

    Reply
    • Avatar for Tyler Lichlyter Tyler Lichlyter says:
      September 13, 2021 at 9:40 am

      Hey Kory! Yes, you are able to wire to the auxiliary power under the hood. Thanks for checking in!

      Reply
  8. Avatar for Kody LaPoint Kody LaPoint says:
    January 17, 2022 at 1:51 pm

    I am installing this winch on a receiver mount so that I can move the winch to the front or rear if needed. My plan is to wire the winch up using the kit provided with winch so that I can use the rocker switch, but I need to be able to easily disconnect so that I can move it to the rear of the UTV. I know I will need some sort of quick connectors at the rear for power, but how do I run the unit with the same rocker switch? I know I could just use the remote when using it in the rear, but if I lose the remote or the batteries are dead it won’t do me much good. Any ideas on what additional cables will be needed would be great. I hope what I am saying makes sense.

    Reply
    • Tyler Mingione says:
      January 17, 2022 at 3:52 pm

      Hey Kody! We appreciate the support with the Black Ops Winch! Unfortunately, we don’t currently offer what you need to switch back and forth like this. This is an option we’ve seen others use for this: https://www.warn.com/warn-industries-22681-winch-power-cable-connector Hopefully this helps. Feel free to give us a call if you have any trouble at 855-743-3427!

      Reply
  9. Avatar for Kevin Davis Kevin Davis says:
    February 5, 2022 at 11:00 am

    I ran the wires straight to the battery, and the blue and yellow to the winch as instructed and color coded. i have the switch wired to the busbar in the center console between the front and rear seats (x3 max). The winch is not doing anything with either switch (rocker switch also not lighting up like the rest).

    Reply
    • Tyler Mingione says:
      February 7, 2022 at 2:29 pm

      Hey, Kevin. I’m sorry to hear about the trouble. Give us a call at 855-743-3427 with your order info ready so we can help troubleshoot. We’ll be happy to get you figured out.

      Reply
  10. Avatar for Dave Dave says:
    November 24, 2022 at 5:38 pm

    Hi, I Just installed my new ready-fit black ops 4500lbs winch, on my honda pioneer 1000. it is a plug & play simple to install. trouble is it does not work after the installation.
    this is a new replacement. the first new winch did not work after I installed it either. what am I doing wrong? everything is connected the way it should be.
    Thanks for any help you can offer.
    Dave.

    Reply
    • Avatar for Kavan Wright Kavan Wright says:
      November 28, 2022 at 2:18 pm

      Hey Dave. I know you said everything’s connected correctly, but I think you should double check (or triple check) all your connections and check out our installation video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_DMChcrsi0I

      If that fails, you can give us a call at 855-743-3427 or consider using Virtual Mechanic for more hands-on troubleshooting. I’m confident we can get you sorted out one way or another.

      Reply

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