Member Since: 17 Oct 2011
Location: Yorkshire
Posts: 691
Temporary Winch Solution
Ok guys, I spend 90% of my time on road, but do venture off into the muddy stuff. Most of the time I am lamping rabbits alone (certainly never with another vehicle) and I get myself a bit stuck a couple of times per year at silly o'clock in the morning. Not wanting to wake up farmers or friends I have had some slow, sweaty tedious recoveries in the wee small hours by myself. Most have involved finding a boggy spring in a field.
May be occasionally used for rescuing animals. No plans to go extreme off roading. No plans to winch the Disco up Mt Everest. Just pull myself out of the sticky stuff, or out of a ditch if I end up in one out on call in the middle of the night.
Tried hand winches but not for me.
I have looked at a few ready made solutions available that bolt on the tow bar but they seem to be lower powered winches and come with steel cable. If it is to lift on in a sticky situation then synthetic rope may be an advantage.
Yes I know it's cheap (just over £300 when I claim the VAT back) but it will live in the garage 90% of the time and just come out with me if wet/snowy so no exposure to elements. My rough and ready solution for the time being is to make up some long leads with spring clips that can just clamp onto the battery terminals, as and when. If the solution works I will fit front and rear Anderson connectors on my D3 and the wife's FL2.
Debating whether to buy a tow bar mounted tray or have a chap I know who is a genius with a welder fabricate me one. I suspect there would be a way the tray could bolt onto the front tow eye.
So far every single time I have recovered the car backwards as that has been the best way.
Probably, but how would you attach it to the front? You'd have to put some serious metalwork into support the forces - the rear could be supported on the rear eye, behind the towing socket cover, but I don't see how it would work TBH.
Found this http://www.lewiswinch.com/Mark.
2006, D3 SE Auto - gone but not forgotten.
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So it seems you want a powered non fixed winch for occasional use. As wih everything in life there are pros and cons.
There are portable winches that take their power from the car & also some independently powered ones E.g. chain saw winch.
If you go for the independently powered unit it will be much more flexible. I.e. you could winch from the front, the back ,or even side , of the vehicle. It could be used away from the vehicle.
When winching the vehicle you will need points of attachment on the vehicle to catr for most eventualities. The D3 already has suitable points but if you want the winch vehicle mounted there will a cost implication there as well as costs for providing power source near the winch.
I have a TDs winch on the front of My D3 . Any other winch requirement I might come up against I can handle with the high lift jack and some crafty rigging.
Just a few thoughts.
NSNI am a hob nobber.
12th Dec 2012 12:41 pm
blue200tdi
Member Since: 23 Sep 2012
Location: Lincoln
Posts: 1094
I personally would get a smaller winch of better quality for the same price. A 9500lbs would do. A cheap winch may seem a good deal but will it work when you really need it? Can you get spares for it, either broken parts or service parts? As for a mounting, remember that your car weighs at least 2.7 tons plus all your gear and you and the resistance of the mud that you are pulling through. That is a vast amount of energy and putting that energy through a mounting plate not adequate is dangerous, very dangerous.
Also, the bigger the winch the more pulling power, more in fact than the structure of the car can safely take. So if you are stuck fast, rather having to dig a bit you'll carry on winching and rip the front or back of the car off. The factory towing eyes are nowhere near adequate for winching and shouldn't be used. I know people do but do so at your own peril. I've seen them break and believe me they travel at a fair old rate of knots.
But before all that, what tyres do you have fitted? If they're road biased tyres then you will get stuck. Stick some General Grabber AT's on, you may not need the hassle and expense of a winch then.You guys are gonna be busier than a test bench in a plunger factory!
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26th Jan 2013 1:54 pm
Apache
Member Since: 17 Oct 2011
Location: Yorkshire
Posts: 691
Hello, and thanks for resurrecting my thread.
I have AT Grabbers on the car already.
I know I have a lump of metal weighing 3 tonnes but I have no intention of lifting the vehicle in the air. I don't do mad crazy offroading (last time I recovered myself ok with a hand winch).
The towbar is rated to pull a 3500KG trailer and I cannot ever envisage putting that force through a winch. I'd still rather have one that is over rather than under-rated. You seem to be able to hang the car by the lash points so I am not worried about using them for recovery. I picked that one because it seemed good spec and had synthetic rope. If anyone has suggestions of better quality for similar money I am interested.
26th Jan 2013 8:09 pm
RRR207
Member Since: 12 Oct 2011
Location: Bristol
Posts: 372
I have this winch from this supplier on my D4.
It hasn't let me down yet, it has been used to recover others & self-recover. supplier was very helpful & knowledgeable when I was initially looking around.
Mine lives on the car, getting regularly covered in all manner of road c p, if yours is going to spend its time in your garage that can only help the longterm reliabilty.Nick
2010 D4 ....... now gone and replaced with a 05RRV Autobiography
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p, if yours is going to spend its time in your garage that can only help the longterm reliabilty.
