MAXIMUS-3 FORD BRONCO REMOVABLE WINCH SADDLE

[CCMDoc]

Any feedback from those who have installed and used this winch mount?

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[Papa Smurf]

I used it this weekend in an attempt to un-turtle myself from a tractor tire. We ended up dragging the tire and the Jeep I was anchored to. I’m still dealing with the pin hanging up but otherwise it worked flawlessly. I think I know how to adjust it properly, but working on the EB has taken precedent. Overall, still thrilled with it and made several others jealous over the weekend.

 

[CCMDoc]

Thanks Chris - exactly what I was looking for.
‘guess I’ll make use of the Easter sale.

 

[Dr Dan]

Been a while, but I finally had a chance to complete my install. This is what comes in the box, including the wiring quick adapter (which I haven't done yet) and the frame horn reinforcements (bottom silver units).

Quick note about the frame horn pieces, the existing hole in the frame is too small. At some point Ford made it smaller. 1/2" bit on your drill and you're good to go. No big deal at all. The hardest part here was the wiring on the bumper, I could not get my hands in there and needed my neighbor to help as I was holding the bumper up to the side. If you don't have the parking sensors, you won't have this difficulty.

This is the installed unit with the Warn Zeon 10S. I will need to figure out a better system for the wiring, but that was not today's project. The alignment of everything was perfect. Those red pins slide in and out nicely. The wholes lined up perfectly for the Warn mounting positions. Bolting it on was straight forward.

Someone had asked about how much the front will sag, looks to be about 1/2". This is a 24 Wildtrak with the Hoss 3.

For those of us with all the cameras, here is what the image looks like. I knew the camera would be blocked, but honestly not as bad as I thought it would be.

For me, this isn't worth the hassle of a camera relocation kit, but maybe for someone else?

In all fairness, I didn't actually take out the stopwatch, but with hardwiring it into the battery, we're looking at 5-7 minutes to put on and take off. That could be cut in half with the quick connect wiring. The weight of the winch with the plate is about 110 lbs. You will need to be able to lift this weight comfortably as you need to line up the pins and tilt.


So far the only winching I've done with it was to wind the rope under tension by pulling the Bronco up the driveway anchored to another car. I'll let you know how it goes. So far pretty happy.

 

[Dr Dan]

One other thing I forgot to mention. If you have the factory bar on your bumper, you’ll need to grind out a bit of a notch, or just remove the bar. I chose to reinstall it since I was forced to pay for it and I have grown accustomed to the look of it

 

[Vandy]

I just got mine in yesterday. Super excited to get it in but immediately had an issue... The inner pucks aren't sliding in flush. The inner part of the Tow hook on the Bronco has a slight bezzle that's preventing the puck to move in flush. I'll attach photos. I will have to call Maximus about this. Mine is a 2023 Badlands model, so not sure if ford made very slight changes to the mold of the tow hook. Bummer....

 

[Dr Dan]

I just got mine in yesterday. Super excited to get it in but immediately had an issue... The inner pucks aren't sliding in flush. The inner part of the Tow hook on the Bronco has a slight bezzle that's preventing the puck to move in flush. I'll attach photos. I will have to call Maximus about this. Mine is a 2023 Badlands model, so not sure if ford made very slight changes to the mold of the tow hook. Bummer....

110ft/lb of torque smashes those little buggers in real good. Mine did not sit flush until I was torqued in.

 

[Vandy]

110ft/lb of torque smashes those little buggers in real good. Mine did not sit flush until I was torqued in.

Thanks Dr. Dan! I confirmed with the engineer this was the case in order to make a more tighter connection.

I also discovered the smaller hole in the frame as you pointed out. When you drilled a larger 1/2 inch bit hole did you paint or do anything to prevent possible rust in that area?

 

[Dr Dan]

I didn’t repaint, but that’sa good idea.

 

[yamabrp]

This winch mount sure checks all the boxes for me.
Thanks for the install reviews!!

The only issue I have is I am timid about drilling out the holes for the horn reinforce. (I understand a frame horn reinforcement solution is absolutely necessary).

 

[socal_bronco24]

This winch mount sure checks all the boxes for me.
Thanks for the install reviews!!

The only issue I have is I am timid about drilling out the holes for the horn reinforce. (I understand a frame horn reinforcement solution is absolutely necessary).

If I’m not mistaken, you’re not drilling new holes, just making the existing ones bigger. Could someone please confirm?

 

[Thiskers]

If I’m not mistaken, you’re not drilling new holes, just making the existing ones bigger. Could someone please confirm?

This is correct, they just need to either be drilled slightly larger or in my case I did some grinding. Not a deal breaker imo, but does add to the install time.

 

[Kach Vartan]

Question for the group: Does anybody know if the Ford kit includes frame horn reinforcements (and if they would work with the Maximus mount)?

I'm about to purchase this Maximus mount and buy the Ford Performance Winch kit so I can get the Warn winch (don't currently own one and it's a good price now with the 20% coupon and some Ford points).

 

[socal_bronco24]

Question for the group: Does anybody know if the Ford kit includes frame horn reinforcements (and if they would work with the Maximus mount)?

I'm about to purchase this Maximus mount and buy the Ford Performance Winch kit so I can get the Warn winch (don't currently own one and it's a good price now with the 20% coupon and some Ford points).

Yes it does and this is a great plan to acquire both the reinforcements and the winch.

 

[Kach Vartan]

Yes it does and this is a great plan to acquire both the reinforcements and the winch.

Thanks. Just put in the orders for both. Curious, do most of you who went the Maximus route mount the winch before you hit the dirt? Or keep it in the cargo area and mount it on only when the need arises? I’m debating tradeoff between (some/minimal?) loss of approach angle if you install first vs. trying to install when you've already found yourself in an awkward situation.

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