Hi all,
I haven't done a "DIY" article in a while but today I installed my new ebay winch into the standard winch bar on my Nav. This is a how to guide for anyone who wants to try this at home.
Time: Took me about three hours by myself. I would advise a helper as the winch is bloody heavy/awkward for one person. Also I was able to leave the bulbar on the vehicle which helped me, but you may remove the bar for easier installation.
Tools needed:
-Good Socket and spanner sets
-Circlip and normal pliers
-Phillips and Flathead screwdrivers
-Allen Keys
-Knife
Parts needed:
-Winch + accessories
-Check your bolt lengths included in the kit (Mine were perfect) may have to get longer ones. ie. 10mm for the top bolts and 5mm for the bottom.
-Cable protection
- 500A Isolator (if you want to disconnect power to the winch for security)
- Carton of desired beverage
Step 1:
Remove number plate, to access the four bolt holes where the winch will mount to. Also remove the bottom bash plate using a 14mm socket and undo the 8 bolts holding it on.
Step 2:
Lay out all the parts from the box, make sure you have everything. Test fit the winch to see if you have access from underneath the bulbar so that you don’t have to remove it, as the whole bar would be very awkward to reinstall by yourself. Next if from the test fitting you need to rotate the gear box handle for better access for use, now is the time. So to do this you need to use an allen key and undo the 10 bolts on the end so that you can rotate to a better position. Once completed, we can install the winch to the bar. You can now cut the ties holding the wire in place as well. (Be careful of the tension and backlash upon release)
Step 3:
My winch uses a four point foot mounting system that can be mounted horizontally or vertically. In the foot of the winch is a place for the nuts to slide in. I had trouble keeping the nuts in when I was lifting the winch into place so I used some of the packing and sticky tape to hole them in place.
Lift the winch up and line up the holes with the bulbar plate. It is easier to install the bottom bolts first to hold it in place without the fairlead rollers, and then put in the top two bolts. Then you can take out the bottom bolts, Pull the wire eyelet through the fairlead and place the fairlead rollers in place and bolt through and into the winch. Tighten to the specified torque. It is now in place.
