GEN 2 800A+ Offroad Build

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ronniegilbert

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I have a novel solution that should keep the intercooler in the stock location. I will be working on it this Sat. Tomorrow is party at the dealer service center again to try and get all the QA issues resolved.


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Just a note to make sure your winch has a wireless remote. Mine didn't and there is no room to access the winch without one. I have to now spend a couple hundred dollars to get the wireless setup to operate my winch. I did relocate the intercooler. Perhaps your way may not have this issue.


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xxaarraa

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I have a novel solution that should keep the intercooler in the stock location. I will be working on it this Sat. Tomorrow is party at the dealer service center again to try and get all the QA issues resolved.


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Hey any update?
 
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Bark beetle

Bark beetle

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I have it mounted but I was going to wait until the dealer can mount the skidplates to verify fit. Right now I am still guessing it will work. Parts didn't show up at the dealer so I spent most of the weekend making real skidplates. The only one I plan on keeping for at least a little while is the front one. Middle one is almost complete and the rear one will be made this weekend, I hope. Not sure if I will replace the t-case one yet. Full custom bumpers are likely, but not right now. When I do them I want to relocate the intercooler for improved approach angle. This will also be the time I make a rear one and mod the bed sides for better departure angle. It is a pet peeve to only have one custom bumper. So just like everything on a G2, I have do more waiting.


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xxaarraa

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I have it mounted but I was going to wait until the dealer can mount the skidplates to verify fit. Right now I am still guessing it will work. Parts didn't show up at the dealer so I spent most of the weekend making real skidplates. The only one I plan on keeping for at least a little while is the front one. Middle one is almost complete and the rear one will be made this weekend, I hope. Not sure if I will replace the t-case one yet. Full custom bumpers are likely, but not right now. When I do them I want to relocate the intercooler for improved approach angle. This will also be the time I make a rear one and mod the bed sides for better departure angle. It is a pet peeve to only have one custom bumper. So just like everything on a G2, I have do more waiting.


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Wow, that sounds awesome! So, as of now, you have been able to mount a winch with just a stock bumper and without having to relocate the intercoolers, correct?

Eager to see pics when you can post them. Thanks.
 
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Bark beetle

Bark beetle

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Sorry guys, I got super busy getting ready for a quick trip to Vegas after completing the front skidplate install. I finally have a little time to update the build. I say this a novel solution or one could say goofy. I have mixed feelings about it. It is very functional, light, strong, and simple but it doesn't look the best. I am leaving them for now but short of building a complete bumper, I have decided these are it. I did take the whole front apart and spent a fair amount of time assessing the situation and anything beyond this but short a complete bumper wouldn't be very good and add a lot of weight to the front. Not what I want to do with this build. When full bumpers come, I think all aluminum is gonna be the hot ticket and my aluminum welding skills need more improvement before I tackle that. I also completed all the skidplates based on my own interpretation because I got tired of waiting for mine to come in. Everything is 3/16" mild steel because it is what I had laying around that had sufficient strength. AR100 or other HSLA steel would be the best. The stock ones are a joke, even if they are HLSA because they are too thin and don't exactly protect what needs protecting. When I was at the dealer on Friday I finally got to see the stock ones on another Raptor and I was actually glad I had not seen them before making mine. The stock ones cover the cats and are good for dry grass but also trap heat around the tranny. Mine leave the cats open for airflow under the truck and should keep the area cooler but parking on top of tall dry grass is a no no. The stock ones also leave the cross over pipe fully exposed, leave the charcoal canister and transfer case partially exposed. Mine provide some coverage for the crossover pipe and fully encase the charcoal canister and transfer case. A dented exhaust won't end a trip but a hole in the transfer case will. Weight wise, I think I made a near trade for the running boards. I still need to swap the two low bolts for some pan head ones or counter sunk ones. With the whole setup assembled, the winch mounts hurt the approach angle a bit, but nothing that will affect the truck real world any worse than the rear overhang. For the tech types, these mounts utilize the stock D rings with the load through the system at the exact location as the D ring. The D rings were recycled and moved closer to the frame by a couple inches. Any force or impulse from a winch is a static load and is less than the dynamic load involved with a strap recovery through the D ring. Enough babbling, here are the pics.
Stock D rings
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New D rings with receiver mounts
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Winch ready for use. I should also mention my most common use of the front receiver is a steel rack for carrying 20' lengths in combination with a headache rack and rear receiver mount. Winch cables also showed up but I haven't had time to get them mounted either.
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The main skidplate with 1.5x0.25 wall DOM leading the way where I hit the most. I also added a couple pieces of angle to spread the impact out on the stock frame. I did some research and it looks like the frame is 50ksi steel or better. The plate now mounts through the holes in the front A-arm cups and the engine cross member bolts. No more u-nuts. Oil changes are still very easy.
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Finally got all the skids mounted together at the dealer. Sure was nice working with a lift versus making all the steel ones on the ground in my driveway! I took a few cordless tools to the dealer and cut out the front skidplate to clear the receiver tubes and allow the pins to be installed. I am going to paint all of it black as soon as I can. Not a fan of the silver.
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If you factor in that the D rings were 2" lower than the are now, there is actually no loss in approach angle.
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On the ground and out the door to Vegas!
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Dirt simple, light and effective but not pretty in my opinion.



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xxaarraa

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With the whole setup assembled, the winch mounts hurt the approach angle a bit, but nothing that will affect the truck real world any worse than the rear overhang. For the tech types, these mounts utilize the stock D rings with the load through the system at the exact location as the D ring. The D rings were recycled and moved closer to the frame by a couple inches. Any force or impulse from a winch is a static load and is less than the dynamic load involved with a strap recovery through the D ring.

Thanks for coming back to post pics bark! I was waiting eagerly.

First of all, awesome work. Among all the street queens, you are actually doing something with your new raptor, which is outstanding. No need for it to be pretty, if it works.

Couple of questions:

  • The stock D-rings look like they are bolted on. So this whole winch setup as it stands is just a bolt-on operation? Unbolt stock D-Ring, bolt new receiver D-ring back on?
  • Where did you buy the D-ring with the receiver built in?
  • With the winch mounted to one of the new replacement D-rings, how badly is the approach angle impacted? Looks like the winch sits quite far forward?
  • Since the winch is on a hitch, I suppose you could just wheel with it in the bed, and then mount it up when you get stuck and need to winch yourself out. Instead of having it always mounted? I get that sometimes your front-end could be buried in a mud puddle and you won't be able to mount the winch, but for most dry wheeling situations, mouting the winch just when you need is should be OK?
 
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Bark beetle

Bark beetle

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Correct on all bolt on. I made everything, you cannot buy any of the stuff I have off the shelf. That includes the winch cradle, bolt on receiver/D ring brackets, skidplates, and the winch mount in the bed. If you look at my early posts in this thread you will see the bed mount for the winch. I never drive around with the winch out front and ironically all the times I have needed to winch so far are from the back as your mud scenario, except mine have all been quicksand. Going forward is impossible.

The winch is a few inches forward from the mount because it needs to clear the curve of the bumper. Total stinger length is around 12" including the length plugged into the receiver and winch cradle.

Approach angle with the winch attached is affected badly but I don't wheel with it on the front. There are certainly scenarios I can dream up where this configuration would not work but I would rather not find myself in those with a Raptor because those would mostly be rock crawling stuff.


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