Ok here is the deal. I do not use my FJ as a "wheeler" or even do a lot of offroad travel. I do however use my FJ to travel in Mexico and some remote areas in the US as more of an adventure type vehicle. From time to time I get into situations where a winch would be a nice safety feature to have. To date I have yet to get stuck in my FJ, but in my 88' 4Runner I found myself in a small ditch in Mexico that left me there for a few hours till I found someone to pull me out. There have been times when I made the choice not to go somewhere becuase I knew there would not be anyone around to help should I get stuck.

My question is what size winch would fit my needs as described above? I am getting ready to install an ARB bumper and want to install a winch at the same time.

 

At a minimum go for the Warn M8000.
Better yet at 9000 lb is the Warn XD9000.

That is what I have in my ARB bumper.

 

Was thinking in the 8 to 9k range. Any opinions on other brands besides Warn?

 

I prefer Warn.
A little more money, but their reputation is the best in the industry.

I have had mine since February of 2002 without a problem.

 

Here is a thread you might want to take a look at.
https://www.yotatech.com/forums/f123...-winch-137393/

He will be testing out the new Smitty winches, might be worth looking into after he gives some feedback on them.

 

i love FJs... and yours is just badass corey

 

Thank you Ozzie.
I put a lot of planning into the look/feel I am aiming for, which is Expedition/Overland style.

Mods will start up again sometime in the spring.
Taking a break during the winter.