Why is it so hard to get a new 4×4 with a winch? There are dozens of options for bumpers and winches for most 4x4s if you’re willing to do the work yourself. If you’re looking to take the easy route and get one installed by the factory that built your ride, it’s a lot tougher.
Here are all of the 4x4s on sale today that offer a factory winch, and why it’s not more common.
Why Would You Want a Factory Winch?
If your off-roading goes beyond taking it easy on a gravel track or forest road, you’ve probably thought about adding a winch to your kit. A motor and a few dozen feet of line can be the difference between a few minutes of annoying and begging for an extraction or a ride home. If the terrain gets truly rough or muddy, at least.
Hook on to a big tree, boulder, or even another rig, and you can pull yourself out. The winch motor pulls even if your truck is spinning its tires on a sheet of ice, as long as you have a good enough anchor.
Buying a factory-installed winch will probably cost you more than buying one at your 4×4 shop, but there are some big benefits. You can get it included in your overall vehicle financing, for a start.
A factory winch will also come with a factory warranty. Crucially, you can rest easy knowing that the automaker’s engineers have tested the winch, the bumper, and the mounting points. They know you’re not going to tear the frame because the winch isn’t installed right or because a bracket isn’t up to the job.
Last but definitely not least, a factory-installed winch won’t light up your dashboard like a Christmas tree. Your engine cooling systems, parking sensors, radar cruise control, front cameras, and the rest will all work just fine with an OEM winch. They might be fine with an aftermarket one, too, but this way you don’t have to think about it.
Every 4×4 With a Factory Winch in 2026
Chevrolet Colorado ($ Varies)
The easiest segment to find a winch is currently mid-sized trucks, with three brands offering up a pull. The Chevrolet Colorado offers a winch on three different versions of the truck, including the Trail Boss, ZR2, and the ZR2 Bison.
To get the Comeup winch, you’ll need to add the Recovery Package and off-road front bumper package. With those, you get the winch, a new front bumper with 30-inch off-road LED lights and pod lights, a new front skid plate, and an accessory switch kit. It adds around $7,500 to the price of the truck.
If you were already looking at the ZR2 Bison, then you can save around half of that, because it already comes with a winch-capable bumper from AEV.
Ford F-150 ($20,085)
The Ford F-150 Tremor is the truck for drivers who need extra off-road capability but don’t need the cost or compromise of the F-150 Raptor. Unlike the Raptor, the Tremor offers a 12,000-pound Warn Xeon winch, but it’s a tough one to get.
You’ll pay $9,220 for the winch, but it’s only offered on the Tremor High package, which is another $10,865. At least the High package comes with other goodies like a modular front bumper, an automatic 4×4 system, and upgraded B&O audio.
Ford F-Series Super Duty ($4,375)
When Ford launched its Tremor off-road package for the F-250 and F-350, its off-road tires, upgraded suspension, and limited-slip front differential were all big deals. But the 12,000-pound Warn winch was an important feature, too.
Since then, Ford has expanded the availability of that winch. You don’t need the Tremor package to get it; you just need to tick the box for it on the options list. The winch is dealer-installed, but it is a factory option.
Even better, it’s offered for every single Super Duty pickup, from F-250 to F-550. From XL to Platinum trim grades.
GMC Canyon ($ Varies)
Just like its Chevrolet sibling, you can get your Canyon with a Comeup winch. But since GMC doesn’t offer a more mild off-roader like Chevy does, you’ll need to get your Canyon in AT4X or AT4X AEV flavors.
It adds around $3,500 to the price of the trucks, but like with the Chevy, the AT4X needs a new bumper as well.
Ineos Grenadier ($3,905)
The Grenadier from Ineos is the result of a classic Defender owner who wasn’t happy with the new one. It uses a ladder frame and a classic Defender-like body, combined with BMW engines and a genuine 4×4 system with optional locking everything.
The 12,000-pound Red Winch option costs $3,905. But, sadly, it only comes with a 35-foot winch line, which isn’t enough for most recovery situations.
Ineos Quartermaster ($3,905)
The Quartermaster is the pickup-truck version of the Grenadier, adding an open box in the back. You can add a winch to this off-roader, too; in this case, a 12,000-pound unit that costs $3,905.
Jeep Gladiator ($4,995)
After a few years of offering a winch on the Jeep Wrangler, you can finally get one on its pickup-truck near-twin. The Jeep Gladiator has added a factory-installed winch for the first time this year, but it might be hard to find. Very hard to find.
Jeep will deliver you a new Gladiator Rubicon with a winch-capable bumper, but no winch. To get the winch, you’ll need to order the Shadow Ops edition, one of a series of special editions Jeep is running this year. It comes with the winch and a new bumper along with special graphics and body-colored flares and top.
It costs $4,995, but that’s just $2,605 more than a Gladiator with the body-color parts, so it’s a bargain in this crowd.
Jeep Wrangler ($3,490)
We already gave away the winch-equipped Wrangler, but the Jeep Wrangler makes it a lot easier to get. You can add a Warn winch to both the two- and four-door Rubicon models, and you can also get it on the (four-door only) Wrangler Moab 392.
On any of those, it adds $1,995 to the price, plus you’ll need the $1,495 Steel Bumper Group that includes the bumper that allows the winch to fit.
Land Rover Defender ($8,000)
The modern Defender leans a lot harder into luxury than its predecessor ever did, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t capable. The Defender offers a height-adjustable air suspension, terrain response system, and locking differentials. Land Rover will also kit up your Defender with a winch.
Land Rover’s Warn winch hides behind the front bumper under a “pedestrian safe winch cover.” It’s an $8,000 package, and you can get it on Defender 90, 110, and 130 models.
If you’re looking at the Defender Octa, the absolutely bonkers model with wider track, more power, and 6D dynamic suspension, you’re going to have to spend more for your winch. On that model, it’s an eye-watering $17,000. At least it has a remote control.
Ram 2500 Power Wagon ($ Varies)
Last but certainly not least is the Ram 2500 Power Wagon. This ultra-capable heavy-duty pickup was the pioneer of the HD off-road segment. It delivers a special long-travel rear suspension, skid plates, front and rear e-lockers, and more.
If you get the 6.4L Hemi V8 gas engine, you can tick the box for a factory-installed winch. It comes with either the Level I or Level II equipment packages. You can’t get the winch with the 6.7L Cummins diesel engine, though, and we’re about to get back to that.
Conspicuously Absent
Ford Bronco
The Ford Bronco Everglades was a package for getting wet. It included higher vent tubes for the axles and transmission, along with a high-mount air intake. It also came with a winch and front bumper, right out of the Ford plant. The first SUV to do so, and probably why Jeep does now too.
Ford offered the winch as a Ford Performance accessory for other Bronco owners. But the package went away after model year 2024, and the winch is now gone from the Ford Performance Parts catalogue.
Why Are There So Few Factory 4x4s With a Winch?
A winch is great if you’re stuck in a way that can be solved by pulling. They can also help move trees and other obstacles out of the trail. But they come with serious compromises, and some of those are tough to get around.
Weight
Weight is a problem for automakers. Adding more of it cuts into cargo-carrying capacity and reduces fuel economy. A 10,000-pound winch weighs 85-100 pounds, and that’s before you count the new bumper and brackets.
So it hurts capacity and mileage, and all of that weight ahead of the axle changes the vehicle’s dynamics, which could require other engineering changes. Those things aren’t problems when it’s sold as an accessory, but they are for anything that comes from the factory.
Cooling
Trucks and SUVs are built to work hard. Towing and hauling capacities are higher than ever, and so is horsepower. The combination puts out loads of heat, and that’s a problem for durability.
A modern pickup can have a radiator, intercooler, oil cooler, transmission cooler, air conditioning condenser, and even a steering cooler, all mounted behind the front bumper. They need airflow to stay cool, and a winch can block enough air to be a big issue.
That’s why the new Ram 2500 Power Wagon diesel doesn’t offer one and the gas engine does. Heat management. Overheating at max load with a factory winch is Ram’s problem. Doing it with an accessory is yours.
Safety
The U.S. doesn’t really have pedestrian crash test standards like the EU, and HD trucks like the Super Duty and Ram 2500 have standards that are less strict than the demands of lighter trucks and SUVs. But crash safety is still important to automakers.
Bolting 100 pounds of steel to the frame can be a big problem for a vehicle’s crash performance, and that has to be one of the automaker’s considerations.
Making it work can mean some strange choices. Just look at the front bumper of the winch-equipped Jeeps and their 70s-style bumper pads. That’s to make sure a crash impact goes to the bumper before the winch.
Sensors
A modern vehicle’s front end is packed with sensors. Ultrasonic for parking, radar for cruise control and collision avoidance, cameras for those systems and for you. It’s a busy place; if the winch team and safety team are fighting for real estate, the safety team is going to win. More buyers want adaptive cruise control than a winch, and you can’t add that one after the sale.
Read the full article here