Winching issues....

[Stump]

What the heck is going on?

I have a viper 3500lb winch for my 08 Kawi BF(bought BRAND NEW this spring). With the wheeler running, every time I want to winch....the winch pulls for about 4-6 inches and then all but pretty much stops and starts whining at me.

BUT....

If I shut the wheeler off(but leaving the key on to give the winch power), it will winch.

What the heck is going on? I have no mods....everything is stock.

[bmxer18]

well lets see i got a 500 efi with one that came with it i would take it all out if it will come and hold it tight and rewind it in cause if it's not tight that will tend to happen it used to happen to me some times

[Stump]

Binding isn't the issue.

[pbrown5205]

Sounds like a voltage drop issue to me, check your winch mounting to make sure no bolts are loose causing you to lose the ground. Also look to see if they ran the positive feed all the way to the battery like it should be. Another thing to check is if they have an external winch solenoid there could be loose connections.

[Stump]

I ran everything because I did the install. All connections are tight and positive running straight to the battery. All or most winches has a solenoid....that's fine.

But all still doesn't explain why the winch pulls just fine with the wheeler shut off, but doesn't pull when it's on. If the wiring was bad or wasn't connected as it should, I would have the same results atv on or off.

[pbrown5205]

Could be the point where you picked up the + voltage to trigger the solenoid.
Make a jumper wire and try going from the "in" side of your winch switch to the battery...check all the switch connections while your in there... Im still convinced you got a voltage drop somewhere along the line.

[Roofer]

My guess is the relay/selenoid with the winch. Contact Viper and see what they say. They should be able to help you being they have probably been through all the scenarios.

I doubt it has anything to do with the brute, unless it has a stator that is bad. I'm not 100% on the following, but it makes sense to me. The current drawn for any accessory while the machine is running will run off of power generated by the engine. Once the machine is turned off, it goes to the battery power only, which may or may not be stronger.
I'm no pro on electronics, so take that with a grain of salt. Hopefully someone knows more about it.

[pbrown5205]

I was right, the ole man has been pullin wrenches for over 30 yrs and knows voltage drops do funky things...