This was my thought as well but I read a few other posts on here and it got me questioning things but I'll give it a shot and see how it goes
Dopey
I have been asking about this as well. I don't know this is a fact or anything, but I think Warn switched to the less expensive hawse fairlead on the 2nd generation (VR8, 10 & 12) to cut cost. That being said, the gen. 2's look to be a bit more rigid and have a better control box so I guess they put more money in other areas.
I ended up ordering a gen. 1 VR8000 from Rock Hard 4x4 today for $399, no tax and free shipping. That's a $100 less than the VR8 and comes with the normal roller fairlead. It's a proven, reliable design and I'm happy to support Rock Hard 4x4 since they are an active supporting Wayalife vendor.