Anyone using a hitch receiver type winch?

[Ron4RNevada]

I do a lot of off-roading. That said I was thinking about a portable winch for the '13 4Runner SR5. My wife has pretty much let me know that she doesn't want to see me modifying it too much (Like I did with the Land Rovers). Anyway, with the 4Runner having so much plastic cladding both front and rear I was thinking of purchasing a hitch receiver mounting portable.

So anyone here bought and used one? What did you get? What did you use and and how did you install cable and plugs to the rear of the vehicle?

Has anyone installed a hitch receiver to the front of the vehicle?

Thanks in advance. I'm hoping this thread gets a lot of response.

 

[thebwlife]

My concern would be pulling a 4500lb truck with a hitch rated to 5K. Then add a bit of drag for being stuck and your yanking over the rating of the hitch.

I'd do a Budbuilt hidden winch plate over just about anything.

 

[Intruder]

I've always wondered where people keep those hitch receiver winches while they drive. If it's in a front or rear hitch it's really going to kill your approach or departure angle. Keeping it inside the vehicle seems like a terrible idea unless it's properly secured. A winch rated for 8,000 to 10,000 lbs is pretty heavy...

 

[Jeremy556]

I'd do a Budbuilt hidden winch plate over just about anything.

This is the way to go. Mine worked great.

I hope I'm fit enough to consider carrying around a winch for off road recoveries when I'm 74!

 

[philsey]

..... plus, it seems to me quite possible that you could get stuck with your arse buried, such that you couldn't mount the winch ... so to prevent that, you always install the winch before you go off the hard.

I don't know huevos about offroading, but it doesn't seem like a good idea to me.

Buy the wife some jewelry.

 

[Ron4RNevada]

Well I've been pulling other stuck people out of trouble for about 55 years using a tow strap or kinetic strap attached to the hitch receiver without problems. So I figured it might be a good idea to get a portable winch - - -

Around here it's dry, sandy, rocky or snowy -> Never muddy; so a winch mostly would not be pulling the full weight of a truck just whatever the lack of traction the other guy needs to overcome in the sand (usually). The class III receivers have always been up to the requirement.

Anyway - back to the question: Anybody use a portable receiver mounted winch - probably rated at 6000 pounds or less?

Generally worst case scenario:

 

[Jetboy]

I had one for my 3rd gen 4runner. It was a 9000lb and I've used it a lot. It's a HF badlands winch. Works awesome. Way slower than the warn 8274 in my land cruiser, but its way cheaper too. I have it setup like this: Front has a 200 amp Anderson connector on 4ga wire dropped from the battery just behind the bumper. The winch plugs into this. 99% of the time it goes in the front and plugs in there. If I need to use in the back, I also have long set of 4ga jumper cables with a matching Anderson connector on one end and alligator clips on the other. Plug jumpers in to the front battery and they are just jumper cables. without opening the hood. Plug the connector into the winch and the cables reach from the winch mounted in the rear hitch and alligators go to the battery to use the winch to pull backward. Works awesome. I've used it probably 100+ times. For a cheap winch it's been really reliable.

As for the question of where to store it? I store it in the garage when I'm doing my daily driving. Going offroad? I leave it in the front hitch. The hitch mount sits high enough it's never really a problem for approach angle. The downside on the 5th gen is most front receivers I've seen are way low due to the bumper design. That's something you'll need to sort out. Probably a custom mount through the bumper cover.

As for pulling on a 5k lb hitch - we're talking apples and oranges. A 5klb hitch is a dynamic load of 5k lbs, not a static pull. 9k lbs static pull on a 5klb hitch is no problem at all.

Good luck!

 

[phillyd2]

Not on the truck but I do on the ATV. They make quick connect cables which makes hook up a breeze. I would not go below a 8k winch.

Curt makes a front receiver mount.

If you keep the winch in the truck when not using it make sure you tie it down good so it does not become a missile in case of an accident.

All that said, I would recommend the Budbuilt hidden mount as the best solution, especially since you say you off road often.

 

[Ron4RNevada]

JETBOY an PHILLYD2;

Thanks for the info guys - That's what I was looking for....

 

[KevinAB]

I've been considering a hitch-mount winch as well. The only issue holding me back from making the leap is with the overall pull rating. I considered a winch rated for around 9,000lbs because I'm pretty sure my front hitch is rated for that. But I'm not sure the hitch receiver mount plates I've seen have that high of a rating. Plus if the hitch receiver is too far back from the front of the bumper, an extender must be used, and the ones I've seen are rated far below the 9,000lbs. (The extender may only be an issue for the front hitch, not the rear hitch.)

The downside on the 5th gen is most front receivers I've seen are way low due to the bumper design. That's something you'll need to sort out. Probably a custom mount through the bumper cover.

I have a 2013 SR5, but installed (after learning about it on this forum) a front hitch by Curtis that's made for the Trail Edition. Installation requires removal of some (worthless) plastic across the bottom of the front bumper, which then allows for the hitch to be mounted higher on the frame than the one made for the SR5's. It's also a modification that is not overly noticeable.