Hi!

I'm looking for self-recovery options for a 3rd gen 4Runner (Surf actually), and there's at least a theoretical possibility of placing winch at the rear part of the vehicle, hidden behind rear bumper, while its cable would be layed underneath the car right to the front bumper. Ideally it would be a 1-winch, 2-cable system capable of winching both back and forth.
Has anyone seen evidence of such a setup?

I would say that a series of snatch blocks is your best bet. Not sure about running it under the vehicle though, sounds like carnage waiting to happen unless you do a lot of fab work.

Yep, it would be quite interesting but complicated to find the right engineering solution, would require a decent amount of time. Repeating someone's recipe is a lot faster, that's why i was asking this question
Otherwise, having no time to experiment, i'll just go traditional way.

The closest thing I have seen is on Military trucks. They mount the winch on one of the frame rails and then put roller fairleads mounted along the side to the front and back of the vehicle. One of the rollers is removable to allow the line to be routed through. Even with the super heavy duty frames they sometimes bend.

The best option is to do a reciever mount winch and then can move front or rear. All you owuld need is to make a reciever mount in the front and rear and wire wire heavy duty connectors(like found on batteries of electric forklifts) This way can leave it at home or put either end as/ when needed.

My winch is mounted in the back bumper, and I have been pondering this exact setup for some time. Now that I've got a new welder, you've inspired me to revisit this idea. Bit cold outside, though.

This looks like the best idea. I've seen winch mounts advertised for this purpose, and on the rear with ~7000 lb capacity on the hitch, you should be able to get out of nearly any mess.

Though on the front... Not sure how you could get into a pickle where you're self recovering and needing a front recovery unless you back up or roll someplace "bad" (maybe someone could describe something besides spinning wildly out of control?). Anyhow, if there is a "frame" mount hitch option for the front (versus replacing a stock bumper) I'd be interested in seeing the setup.

I'm pretty sure I've seen a system to mount a winch in the front stock bumper. I can't find it right now though. Here's what i came up with, though neither are really helpful:

Lucrum Stock Bumper Winch Mount
http://www.toyota-4runner.org/off-ro...ck-bumper.html

There are lots of problems with putting a winch in a cradle and using a receiver. First off say you get stuck in a stream. then you have to go get it out of the back, put it on the front or the back, and hook up direct power and ground to the winch in the WATER. Not a good idea at all. you could say "i dont cross creeks", but bad things happen. With that receiver ideal you have to carry that massive and heavy thing somewhere inside the vehicle, and you will have to run some sort of hot wire to the back so you can plug the bad boy in.

Its just too awkward and complicated. I would love to see someone stuck on some snowy/icy hill try and get a 100+ lb winch into a receiver without falling.......

Not that I ever fancied the idea of that kind of setup, but those are some good points that I've never thought of.

I am considering putting front/back hitch mounts and running a winch in a cradle. The hope would be that I would be smart enough to mount the winch BEFORE I need it, but I realize that won't always happen.

I realize there are downsides to this approach, but 95+% of the time I will not be needing a winch and I would prefer to leave it at home or in the back of the truck where it is not going to get ravaged by the elements (and salt).

Obviously this is not ideal for a hard core offroader, but for a truck that is mostly on pavement/logging roads I am hoping it will be a good compromise.

Sounds like AAA would be a lot cheaper and easier for you if you aren't going to be on any difficult trails. Most people I know who are hardcore still only use their winches like once or twice a year, and it's usually for someone else's vehicle.

i used mine abut 15 times this year, and probably 12 of those were for other people, and 6 of those were full sized suburbans......

i hope with some snow ill be able to use it more

It's not that I won't ever be on difficult trails, just 95% of the time I'm not on difficult trails and since it's my daily driver, I would rather not lug the winch around while driving to/from work (especially on salt covered winter roads).

It would mainly be extra insurance for when I'm travelling alone on old, unused logging roads which may not have been maintained in 30 years. The two times I've been stuck, a hitch mounted winch would have saved me a long walk.

And AAA (CAA up here) won't cover you when you're not on a government road. A tow truck call to pull you out when you're 75 kms away from the closest pavement would probably be around the price of a good winch and the welded hitch points.

its going to be a PITA to set up all your power and grounds on both the front and the back. HOW ABOUT JUST A FRONT RECEIVER MOUNT. The back is useless. or buy a big comealong or highlift

agreed, I'll start with the front mount, but I'll get rock sliders and a high lift before any of this.

I am eventually going to need a near rear bumper (salt ), so I was planning on getting on offroad one with a hitch receiver. I have a buddy who is an electrical engineer, I was hoping he was going to work out the wiring with me, which I agree will be a PIA to get set up correctly. If it ends up being too much work I will abandon the idea.

Either way this is still in the "nice to have"/planning stage. I am going to start with dual batteries & an inverter and then build up from there so it may never actually get done.