Winch in front bumper?

[jonathan1994]

I figure the unibody construction leaves little open room. Will we be able to install a winch behind the front bumper?

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[Rkbrumbelow]

If someone designs and markets one, I don’t see why not.

 

[MarkG]

If there is a market for it I am sure an aftermarket manufacturer would make a replacement bumper that would accommodate a winch.

 

[medgar]

I started a small conversation about wishes for a hidden winch in the sema measurement post Dont know how hidden it can me due to cooling ducts are so low on Maverick. Someone posted a picture of how creative they have gotten with winches on Subarus

Time will tell once the experts get ahold of a Maverick on how “hidden” it can be

 

[jonathan1994]

So the hybrid will have more room since it's not intercooled?

 

[Darnon]

So the hybrid will have more room since it's not intercooled?

Both have active grille shutters in the lower bumper opening as well.

 

[Edge Haley]

I have seen this on other off-road vehicles. A 2" trailer hitch (pipe) welded or bolted to the front frame and the 2" hitch sticking out in front of a bumper several inches. Harbor Freight and others sell a winch mounting plate that goes into the 2" hitch in the front and that you attach a winch to....so the winch is easy to attach and remove....probably not a good idea to ride down the interstate with a winch mounted...but this works to get someone out of a ditch with a portable winch mountable to front or rear. Would be useful for someone with only Front/2 Wheel drive. People use the portable winch mount from HF on the rear hitch all the time, who don't want a winch mounted permanently.

All of the above depends on finding a piece of the frame that will not cause interference when doing service work. On the front it does not have to be centered.

 

[Probity]

I figure the unibody construction leaves little open room. Will we be able to install a winch behind the front bumper?

Are you getting an FX4 with tow hooks? I want to believe somehow, some way the tow hooks are bolted (not welded) to the unibody frame. If so it would then involve a little creative fabricating (i.e. welding) of a u-shaped 2" front hitch receiver mount and bolting it at the tow hook positions, then using a 5-8K or whatever winch and quick-mount plate. I know that's not the type of winch and mount you're looking for but don't see why that wouldn't work. You could also run it off your rear hitch receiver if desired. Running cables/anderson-type connectors to front and rear a PITA but gives max. flexibility, rigged it this way on my Kaw. UTV and it worked a treat.

I was surprised that Curt makes a front hitch receiver mount for the (unibody) Honda Ridgeline CURT Trailer Hitches & Towing Accessories Installation Instructions (carid.com) but when mounted it looks VERY low to the ground and even if Curt eventually made one for the Maverick not sure I'd use it.

 

[wyouger]

Are you getting an FX4 with tow hooks? I want to believe somehow, some way the tow hooks are bolted (not welded) to the unibody frame. If so it would then involve a little creative fabricating (i.e. welding) of a u-shaped 2" front hitch receiver mount and bolting it at the tow hook positions, then using a 5-8K or whatever winch and quick-mount plate. I know that's not the type of winch and mount you're looking for but don't see why that wouldn't work. You could also run it off your rear hitch receiver if desired. Running cables/anderson-type connectors to front and rear a PITA but gives max. flexibility, rigged it this way on my Kaw. UTV and it worked a treat.

I was surprised that Curt makes a front hitch receiver mount for the (unibody) Honda Ridgeline CURT Trailer Hitches & Towing Accessories Installation Instructions (carid.com) but when mounted it looks VERY low to the ground and even if Curt eventually made one for the Maverick not sure I'd use it.

I have a 2" front receiver for my '11 Ranger. It would be nice if I could adapt it to the existing toe hook mounts.

 

[Unclemud]

I would be very interested in a front mount receiver hitch (or duals at the tow hook mounting points) for a platform for bikes or a short cargo box.

 

[StrangeScience]

Front tow hooks are bolted on, at least they are on the Bronco Sport. I'd assume same part/mounting method on the Maverick.

The shaft is screwed and then bolted in the correct, clocked position. A three-piece mount in front of the existing plastic bumper could be fabricated.

 

[rupzuk]

While I’m sure someone will eventually make a mount my take is if you want a winch you already bought the FX4 package so you have tow hooks.
It’s not hard to use a turfer winch or pulls-all to get out if you have a pull point on the truck…like a hook or something.

 

[Fredvon4]

I would bet any truck with ACC and or Park sense, has very limited options for anything out front. In some of the photos above are a cell phone shaped item, most likely the ACC RADAR transceiver

 

[bdaniel230]

I figure the unibody construction leaves little open room. Will we be able to install a winch behind the front bumper?

The problem I keep running into is the intercooler and trans cooler. The only way I can see getting a winch in front is to build supports that bolt back into the body with some rectangular tube that can be bolted or pinched but pinching will cause the body members to distort and what that will do to the straightness of the front end is questionable. Welding tubes into the front end may be the only way to make it happen in a way that doesn't pull the body out of parallel. Still working on how to make it happen. Would have been nice to have the entire front of the truck built separately more like a 71 Camaro or the early unibody designs where the front suspension was bolted to the body section as a unit with a reinforcing frame.

 

[BruisedLee]

There is a draw bar kit for towing the XLT/Lariat behind an RV. That's a lot of weight to pull, so if you could weld on to the draw bars you could technically put a winch plate on
https://www.etrailer.com/Base-Plates/Ford/Maverick/2022/BLU88XR.html?VehicleID=20226007465

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