NoGA -- that's a very interesting technical question.

My bet is that if you winch with a downward vector, applied evenly to both the front airbags, the airbags will attempt to maintain its elevation amount and run the air compressor to do so. This I would consider to be an advantage of air springs off-road, I suppose.

The disadvantage (other than remote operation reliability) is that the airbag contents (air) and compressor are subject to over-heating in challenging cycling up down up down conditions. As compared to the LR4 (D4), the New Defender has a reserve of air and compressor capability which is much larger. But, even so, it is expected in difficult conditions to be able to drive the air bag system to the point of it saying NO MAS ... and giving up a warning saying the same.

 

Properly focused on showing off their winch I hope they sell many ........

 

Wow...

 

Me too! I can't believe how hard it appears to be to install a winch on a Defender, given how many times I installed one on various Jeeps, both on OEM bumper:



And on various aftermarket bumpers that attached quite easily:




Obviously I knew this coming in and still chose the qualities I believe the Defender has that make it better for me now than a Wrangler. But It sure seems like those qualities could have been preserved while still building a platform with proper accessible recovery points and either an easily designed aftermarket winch attachment solution, or the ability to have your Defender assembled at the factory with a proper Warn Zeon 12k installed out front.

 

NoGa:

Lucky 8 is working on a new metal bumper for the Defender. It will be there unhidden winch version, I think.

 

Very good to hear.

 

For what its worth, Old Florida Road (OFR) is no slouch. I've done it in my Hummer H3 (when I didn't know any better), and then in my JKUR (at first with a 4" lift on 35's and later on a 3" lift and 37's). The obstacle in question is pretty hard. The rocks are way bigger than what the camera shows you, and there are trees and a drop off on the left and a rock wall on the right. Oh, and the second rock is crowned so it likes to spit you to the sides. This video:


is of some seriously built jeeps. The first six minutes are on that obstacle. You be the judge on how easy it looks. Winching was the right choice. The ONLY vehicles that I've seen clear that obstacle with no issues was a pair of old WWII ******* Jeeps, lifted on 35's. They went right up but everything else drags the belly. The ******* also looked like they were about to go over on their backs but the old coots driving them acted like it was no sweat.