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Perry Mack and Stan Terai
Kodiak Polar K8000EXTQG Winch - Review
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Perry Mack and Stan Terai
Kodiak Polar K8000EXTQG Winch - Review
1 - Mount the hawse fairlead on the bumper.
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Perry Mack and Stan Terai
Kodiak Polar K8000EXTQG Winch - Review
2 - Awesome start. The fairlead doesn’t line up with the space in the bumper. Fortunately it was Sunday so a good time to get holey.
4 of 10
Perry Mack and Stan Terai
Kodiak Polar K8000EXTQG Winch - Review
3 - The instructions say mount the winch to frame/bumper next, but a test fit showed it was a super snug fit. We mounted the solenoid first. You have the option of an over the line, or over the motor mount. We went over the motor to keep the cables closer to the battery, and mounted the appropriate brackets.
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Perry Mack and Stan Terai
Kodiak Polar K8000EXTQG Winch - Review
4 – The wires are colour coded for an idiot-proof procedure.
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Perry Mack and Stan Terai
Kodiak Polar K8000EXTQG Winch - Review
5 – The 3” Teraflex lift made working from below a snap without jacking up the Jeep. Insert the nuts into the winch mount and bolt the winch to the bumper from below.
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Perry Mack and Stan Terai
Kodiak Polar K8000EXTQG Winch - Review
6 – With some black zap straps, follow the factory wiring harness to the battery.
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Perry Mack and Stan Terai
Kodiak Polar K8000EXTQG Winch - Review
7 - Keep clear of the pulleys and exhaust manifold. You can gain access through the fender well to follow the wiring harness to the battery. Blood from jamming your hand in this tight space helps lubricate retrieving your hand when you’re done. The best procedure is to trick your significant other into doing it for you while you ‘direct’ from above.
9 of 10
Perry Mack and Stan Terai
Kodiak Polar K8000EXTQG Winch - Review
8 – Bolt the cables to the closest available battery terminals. The cable lengths are just perfect.
10 of 10
Perry Mack and Stan Terai
Kodiak Polar K8000EXTQG Winch - Review
9 – The Teraflex Bumper has no licence plate mounting options so we went to Staang’s Fab in Burlington, ON for a fairlead plate holder. The offset in the TF bumper required minor modification and the result was a perfect fit.
Story and photos by Jason Tansem & Stan Terai
This new winch from Quality Gear is the perfect first winch for the off-roader as it is sold as a complete kit. It’s a solid, well-built unit with all-metal gearing that provides a fast, strong pull and a low amperage draw.
The winch is comprised of a non-integrated waterproof solenoid, both wired and wireless remotes, 30 metres of synthetic line and all the hardware. For the first timers it also comes with Quality Gears’ Bear Essentials kit, which has a winch bag, couple of shackles, guide roller, tree saver, gloves and a universal mounting bracket to get your new winch mounted virtually anywhere.
The instructions are woefully vague as there are so many mounting options for this winch. We mounted the Kodiak Polar onto the Teraflex Epic Front Bumper with hoop on our 2015 JKU. The only things you need to buy extra are some black zap straps to secure the power cables on the way to the battery.
Once installed we naturally had to go for a test drive, or rather a test ‘pull’. The winch works as advertised and the remote worked perfectly from in the cab to steer and avoid the rocks at the top. Overall, this is a great unit that will undoubtedly get us out of some sticky situations.
MSRP: $749.99
Specs:
- Line Pull 1st Layer: 3,629 kg (8,000 lbs)
- Gear Train: Planetary Gear
- Reduction Ratio: 152:1
- Motor: 4.8 Hp 12 Volt DC
- Winch Line: 8mm x 30.48 m (5/16” x 100’) Synthetic Rope
- Dimensions: 570 x 166 x 279 mm (22.5 x 6.6 x 11”)
- Bolt Pattern: 254 x 114 mm (10 x 4.5”)
- Shipping Weight: 36 kg (94 lbs)
- Line Speed 1st Layer: 7.9 mpm (26 fpm)