Winch Capacity Needed To Pull 4000lb Vehicle Into Enclosed Trailer

Question:

Will a superwench LT 2500 pull. 4000 lb car into a enclosed car trailer? The incline is 8ft long x 1ft high. Thanks

asked by: Don C

Expert Reply:

A Superwinch LT2500 has a 2500 lb line pull capacity. For a rolling load like a car with fully inflated tires, a winch with a capacity equal to the weight of the vehicle, in your case 4000 lbs is recommended. This means that your winch has about half the needed capacity to pull that vehicle up a 12% slope into the trailer. If a pulley block like # BDW20005 is used, you'll effectively double the capacity of your winch which would do the trick for you and allow you to load the trailer, but
if you'll frequently be loading cars on trailers you should probably consider upgrading to a higher capacity winch.

The LT2500 you have will be pushed pretty hard and probably won't last too long if asked to do this frequently. For a reasonably priced upgrade, I'd recommend the Bulldog Trailer Winch, part # BDW15020 which would have plenty of capacity for the weight of the vehicle you mention.

I've linked you to a product demonstration video featuring the winch I recommended.

expert reply by: Mike L