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WK2 Winch Options???

4K views 7 replies 6 participants last post by  Heath 
#1 ·
Hello All,

Just bought a 2011 WK2 Overland 4X4 with 5.7L HEMI. I have a Warn M8000 winch and was wondering what options for mounting there are.

Warn, at present, has NO front under-bumper mounts for this winch other than universal. I took off the lower front fascia which exposed a vertical surface of the lower frame, near where the tow hooks would be mounted. Is this spot suitable to mount/weld the winch/universal tray? It would probably involve some plastic trimming of the fascia to mount the roller fairlead to the tray.

OR, should I go the way of mounting the winch to the hitch receiver in the rear and run the quick-disconnect cable to the battery under the passenger seat?

Which opens up a new can of worms.... When you're stuck, winch out from forward or behind?
 
#2 ·
I'm sure there are ways to make it work if you wanted to mount it up front, though I'm not technical enough to speak to how to make that work. The only way I could picture it would be with customized brackets and having the guts enough to chop up the front bumper or waiting for ARB or another company to release a front bumper for the WK.

I suppose you could do a rear hitch mounted set up which of course does present it's own inherent challenges both for wiring or even recovery.

It is possible to perform a self recovery from the front even if your winch is in the rear. Of course it would require having a couple of tree savers and snatch blocks on hand to string the winch line up to the front of the vehicle. Not ideal, but it could get the job done.

The biggest question I'd raise is if the M8000 is enough winch for your WK. When I had my 4dr Rubicon I had a chance to pick one of those up. I asked my buddy who is the Trail Master for my club if he thought that would do for me he told to me to pass as he didn't think it was enough winch for my rig. He made the recommendation to consider a winch rated for twice the weight of my vehicle, which for me at the time meant a 9500/10000lb winch. Mind you my 4dr Rubicon weighed in probably about 500lbs less than your Overland which weighs in about 5300lbs.

Just so there is not a misunderstanding either, I'm not saying the M8000 won't work for you. I'm just saying it'll have to work much harder under load than a higher weight rated winch.

Keep us posted on what you plan on doing.
 
#4 ·
have you had any luck mounting it ?
 
#5 ·
:confused:
 
#6 ·
Had a m8000 on a F250. Got it out of some nasty mud holes and that truck weighed alot. If you need more Power use a tree saver and a pulley.
 
#8 ·
kkuntz01 said:
It is possible to perform a self recovery from the front even if your winch is in the rear. Of course it would require having a couple of tree savers and snatch blocks on hand to string the winch line up to the front of the vehicle.
The only way that would be possible is to block off of the jeep itself which itself is not possible.
 
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