Thread: Wiring winch to starter

Originally Posted by LRH110

Hi guys, I have recently installed a new 9000lb winch and bar to my 110 and wired the active to the starter motor so I didn't have to go through the firewall and get thicker wires to compensate for the extra length needed. Has anyone else done this or heard of any issues coarsed by wiring in such a fashion? Cheers, Campbell

Hi Campbell

Welcome aboard to the forum.

I would not do as you suggested and add the winch power cable to the terminal on the starter motor.

If that cable joint became resistive, it would heat up very quickly and then your vehicle would be out of action, as the heat can cause the insulator around the starters terminal to fail. With a red hot cable, even if it didn't catch alight it would definitely wreck the battery.

My 110 already had a hole in the battery box, panel facing forward and near the bottom of the battery box. The hole exits in line with the gap between the floor and the top of the chassis. This is where I ran both the cables for my winch, the positive direct to my second battery and the negative to the battery via a heavy switch, this is for isolating the winch so no idiot can try and get up to mischief, causing damage.
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Originally Posted by LRH110

Hi guys, I have recently installed a new 9000lb winch and bar to my 110 and wired the active to the starter motor so I didn't have to go through the firewall and get thicker wires to compensate for the extra length needed.

I used battery cables from Super Cheap to extend the leads on my winch to reach my battery.

Later on somebody suggested that I could get new leads with crimped ends made up by welding supplies place. I think this may be a good idea. What size wire should be used?

Originally Posted by Beckford

What size wire should be used?

Have a look at your winch specs see if its got and amp or wattage rating (wattage divide by 12 to get amps). Add at least 30% and thats the size wire you should use anyone auto electrician should be able to sort you but for things like this I gravitate towards guys that do marine and truck stuff regularly.

Definitely not a preferred method of running wiring for any electrical device, especially with a load pull from a winch. No telling what damage would be done to the starter or possible fire.

As stated, run the power/active cable from the battery post via a fuse box.

I was going to BluTooth the power to the winch!

It's a pitty the batteries in the Defers are under the seat and not in the engine bay as the shorter the distance the less the voltage drop!

I've always used flexible 35mm2 cable, no joints anywhere, soldered connections at each end and connected directly to the battery (via solenoid) for upto 6Hp motors.

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I have always run a cable under the car to the battery box

But I have always put a winch cut of switch on the front of the battery box so the winch is always off until you need it

Did this on all my trucks for safety

And to stop anyone tampering with the winch when I am not around

Originally Posted by Reads90

I have always run a cable under the car to the battery box

But I have always put a winch cut of switch on the front of the battery box so the winch is always off until you need it

Did this on all my trucks for safety

And to stop anyone tampering with the winch when I am not around

Mine's always been the same setup as Reads90's as well. Many years of incident free winch carrying and operating.

Two pieces of cable, one 3.5m and the other 0.6m (#2 if I remember correctly) with the terminals crimped, soldered and heat shrink wrapped by the local auto sparky for $50 cash. My cutoff switch is minespec style on the bulbar (hence the short cable) with a small padlock in the "off" position. The long cable just runs nicely tucked away to the battery box and Puma's have a number of ready grommited access holes in the box for easy access.