Is it possible to mount a winch without needing a new bumper or a big bull bar? I seem to remember something in the Land Rover catalogue where there was a Discovery with an almost-hidden winch. Any ideas what brackets, etc. would be needed?

Also, with only a winch is it necessary to go with heavier-duty suspension?

In short, I'm still running stock suspension but am interested in getting a winch for those just-in-case scenarios. I'm trying to decide (a) whether I should get a winch and (b) what impact it would have on my suspension decision. I really like the stock ride height and feel, so I'm not too sure how much I want to monkey with it.

Thanks!
RedAustinIX (Ed)

 

D.A.P. and Bearmach marketed a channel that installs between the frame rails. I thought the DAP was still available, but I just did a quick look on their website and couldn't find it. Search for "discreet winch mount" and or "DAP winch mount" you should find plenty of examples of the installation, but as for where to buy now... Best of luck!

 

D.A.P. and Bearmach marketed a channel that installs between the frame rails. I thought the DAP was still available, but I just did a quick look on their website and couldn't find it. Search for "discreet winch mount" and or "DAP winch mount" you should find plenty of examples of the installation, but as for where to buy now... Best of luck!

 

DAP Discrete Winch Mount on MuddyOval.com

 

If you keep your suspension stock, chances are if you mount a winch you'll dive a bit under braking. You'll most likely need to upgrade to something more heavy duty.

Are you sure you need one? How much off roading do you do? How extreme? Where do you go off roading? These are some good things to take into consideration.

 

Guys --

Thanks for the info -- that's exactly what i had in mind. I don't off-road much (if at all) -- it was more future planning that I was thinking of. However, it looks like it may be a much larger project than I was thinking of, so maybe I'll stay with a non-winch set-up.

Thanks again!
RedAustinIX (Ed)

 

If you are in need of something that you can use as a winch when you absolutely need one, maybe look at using a Hi-Lift?

I know it's not the best option and it's really not fun to do, but it works if you need it.

 

Or get one of these:

Extreme 4x4 Ltd DISCOVERY 2 BUMPER WITH LIGHTS TO TAKE QD WINCH TRAY

And then tell me where you found it in the US...

 

I have this hide-a-winch set up in my plans! Have bracket just looking for the winch at the right price.

 

You should be able to pretty easily find a shop to fabricate a bumper with a receiver built in, or a front receiver hitch that would mount between the frame rails. When I had my winch bumper built, I had receivers built into both outer corners of the winch tray so that I can move my recovery point to either side, mount a hitch for moving a trailer around easily, or anything else that you might want to plug in to a hitch receiver.