Picked up a a Warn Endurance 12.0 for a deal too good to pass up. Just got done installing it behind the ARB on the LX450 (already on the vehicle) and thought I would leave a few notes for the next person doing this. Sorry for no pics as I don't have a camera anymore, but if I do soon, I can take some if anyone is interested.
Note that the winch DOES NOT bolt right up to the ARB like most other Warn winches. Though the bolt pattern is the same as thoe old ones, 10x4.5", the winch is longer than other models. This causes the motor housing to contact the inside of the angled portion on the ARB. The winch will only fit if it is spaced about 1/2" back from the mounting surface on the bumper.
1. Decide how you want to space the mount. The easiest way would be to use nuts or spacers to standoff the winch. I was a little dubious about this due to what happened to the 12.0 in the Overland Journal winch test (the non factory mounting plate caused the case to rip apart and destroy the winch). I called the tech people at Warn and they said standing the winch off was ok as long as the mounting points are not allowed to spread. I elected beef and made my own spacer plate out of 1/2" steel. I carefully drilled 3/8" holes for the bolt pattern and cut out the center section slightly bigger than the fairlead cutout on the ARB.
2. Decide how you want to mount the solenoid box. The box is very big, but it will fit in the stock location with a little bit of interference with the body rail that runs below the grill. The rail will bend to accomodate, or you can cut it out before installing. Neither method can be seen behind the ARB. If you do leave the box in the stock location, the remote control plug in will be hard to get to. I just left it in place, its not that big a deal.
3. Before mounting the winch (I managed to do it without a hoist or helper, but it was very hard) make sure that the solenoid box is unbolted from the winch (it can stay hooked to the wires, just don't pinch them). Ensure the cooling inlet and exhaust elbows are tight and make sure they point back toward the radiator when in the mounted position. If you want to use hose clamps to ensure they are sealed, the hoses should be connected too, though they will get in the way alot while setting the winch in place. Once it is in place, you will not be able to get to any of this. It might also be a good idea to consider using metal elbows sourced from a hardware store rather than the supplied plastic ones.
4. Once in place, you can push the hoses on and bolt up the solenoid box. Both reqire small hands and alot of cussing.
5. A good place to mount the fan is right next to where the air filter box connects to the fender. On mine, I mounted it to the back of the backup battery tray, leaving a perfect place to run the wires along the fender and the cooling tube underneath the tray.
6. Like all Warn winches, the fairlead needs to be drilled to fit the ARB. I wasn't sure how until I ran into Eric's "Don't drill the bumper" thread. Still, the measurements were missing, so I figured them out and here they are for future reference:
The 1/2" holes need to be drilled 7/8" from the outside edge, and 3-3/4" down from the top edge. This puts them 1-3/8" down (on center) from the hole that is already there.
Also of note, I don't know if all Warn's fairleads nowadays are like this, but mine came with C-clips holding on the roller axles rather than bolts. I would personally rather have bolts so I can use the upper fairlead truss on the ARB as an extra attachment point since the two new attachment holes are much lower on the fairlead and no longer centered.
Overall I'm pretty happy with the winch, mostly because of the price and how much speed and power it has. It's also very light, and should have a longer duty cycle with the cooling fan. However, there are quite a few things I don't like about it, and honestly I wouldn't reccommend this winch unless you can find a killer deal:
-install is a PITA
-only 80' of line fits on the drum
-the drum material is very thin
-synthetic line cannot be used
-the case is weak and has strict mounting requirements
-the cooling system is kinda hokey and just one more thing to go wrong
-the fan and hose system is plastic
-if the hose system were to leak, water would get directly into the motor
I guess time will tell how the winch performs. I will keep y'all posted.
Note that the winch DOES NOT bolt right up to the ARB like most other Warn winches. Though the bolt pattern is the same as thoe old ones, 10x4.5", the winch is longer than other models. This causes the motor housing to contact the inside of the angled portion on the ARB. The winch will only fit if it is spaced about 1/2" back from the mounting surface on the bumper.
1. Decide how you want to space the mount. The easiest way would be to use nuts or spacers to standoff the winch. I was a little dubious about this due to what happened to the 12.0 in the Overland Journal winch test (the non factory mounting plate caused the case to rip apart and destroy the winch). I called the tech people at Warn and they said standing the winch off was ok as long as the mounting points are not allowed to spread. I elected beef and made my own spacer plate out of 1/2" steel. I carefully drilled 3/8" holes for the bolt pattern and cut out the center section slightly bigger than the fairlead cutout on the ARB.
2. Decide how you want to mount the solenoid box. The box is very big, but it will fit in the stock location with a little bit of interference with the body rail that runs below the grill. The rail will bend to accomodate, or you can cut it out before installing. Neither method can be seen behind the ARB. If you do leave the box in the stock location, the remote control plug in will be hard to get to. I just left it in place, its not that big a deal.
3. Before mounting the winch (I managed to do it without a hoist or helper, but it was very hard) make sure that the solenoid box is unbolted from the winch (it can stay hooked to the wires, just don't pinch them). Ensure the cooling inlet and exhaust elbows are tight and make sure they point back toward the radiator when in the mounted position. If you want to use hose clamps to ensure they are sealed, the hoses should be connected too, though they will get in the way alot while setting the winch in place. Once it is in place, you will not be able to get to any of this. It might also be a good idea to consider using metal elbows sourced from a hardware store rather than the supplied plastic ones.
4. Once in place, you can push the hoses on and bolt up the solenoid box. Both reqire small hands and alot of cussing.
5. A good place to mount the fan is right next to where the air filter box connects to the fender. On mine, I mounted it to the back of the backup battery tray, leaving a perfect place to run the wires along the fender and the cooling tube underneath the tray.
6. Like all Warn winches, the fairlead needs to be drilled to fit the ARB. I wasn't sure how until I ran into Eric's "Don't drill the bumper" thread. Still, the measurements were missing, so I figured them out and here they are for future reference:
The 1/2" holes need to be drilled 7/8" from the outside edge, and 3-3/4" down from the top edge. This puts them 1-3/8" down (on center) from the hole that is already there.
Also of note, I don't know if all Warn's fairleads nowadays are like this, but mine came with C-clips holding on the roller axles rather than bolts. I would personally rather have bolts so I can use the upper fairlead truss on the ARB as an extra attachment point since the two new attachment holes are much lower on the fairlead and no longer centered.
Overall I'm pretty happy with the winch, mostly because of the price and how much speed and power it has. It's also very light, and should have a longer duty cycle with the cooling fan. However, there are quite a few things I don't like about it, and honestly I wouldn't reccommend this winch unless you can find a killer deal:
-install is a PITA
-only 80' of line fits on the drum
-the drum material is very thin
-synthetic line cannot be used
-the case is weak and has strict mounting requirements
-the cooling system is kinda hokey and just one more thing to go wrong
-the fan and hose system is plastic
-if the hose system were to leak, water would get directly into the motor
I guess time will tell how the winch performs. I will keep y'all posted.
I just spent alot of time and sweat installing this thing; I have to feel good about it somehow. 
(it has sleeving to protect the bottom layer from heat) and only use the winch up to 9,500 pounds. The drum thickness is thinner than most winches (5mm as opposed to the 8274's 10mm), and since synthetic has less friction, it is able to tighten up under load to the extent that it crushes a thin drum - as evidenced by the OJ test.
