Horn not working!!!!

Many other forums are filled with kids still trying to figure out where they are, much less what they are doing.

And some folks are just mechanically inept. Not that there is anything wrong with that, other than they shouldn't be offering guidance on fixing stuff.

 

+1

In here we have a good mix of Old Bastards ( Not naming names ) that have been around the block a few times and Young Bastards in training. There are answers to most questions.

 

My 2015's horn didn't work when I drove it off the lot. Took it to the dealer the next morning. They said the ground wire was loose. Has worked several times since they fixed it!

 

Lol one of the many reasons I love this place and learning so much I really do love all the help I get from everyone

 

Ok horn still not working. Replaced the spiral cable with a used one from someone who said it worked when was taken out of there Tacoma. Replaced the relay and the fuse. I hear the relay working but still no sound. Any other thoughts on what it could be or still think I need to spend 165 and get a new factory spiral cable?

 

If you are sure the horn relay is pulling in get a volt meter or a 12 volt test lamp and check for voltage at the horn wire connector. You should see 12 volts at the connector when the relay pulls in. If you have 12 volts at the connector for the horn and no sound either the horn is defective or it has a bad ground. The ground is the bracket that holds the horn to the frame. If you are not getting 12 volts at the horn connector you have a wiring problem between the relay and the connector.

 

Ok thanks I will check that tomorrow

 

I also have the same/similar problem: 2012 Toyota Tacoma TRD, 150,000 miles - Intermittent horn. Everything else functions properly on the steering column. The horn does work, just whenever IT wants to.
By reviewing several forums and posts, I think I've narrowed my issue down to 2 possibilities:
1. Bad spiral cable.
2. Bad contact(s) in the steering column.
Is there a simple way to diagnose the difference between the two issues without tools and without disassembling anything? Such as turning the steering wheel while pressing on the horn? Will this test definitively rule out one issue and point to the other?
Thanks in advance for your help.

Proper diagnosis is 90% of the solution.

 

No, that will not rule out anything.

See the schematic drawing here:


See the power from the battery through the Horn Fuse then through the Horn Relay Coil then through the Spiral Cable to Chassis Ground. That circuit must be complete to close the horn relay contacts that provide power to the horn assemblies and to ground.

Press the Horn in the truck, did you hear the horn relay pull in? If yes, try it in several movements of the steering wheel, Still yes then the spiral cable is probably good.

Connect a test light or a multimeter set on DC Volts to the wire connector at the horn and a good solid ground. Have someone press the horn button on the steering wheel. The light should illuminate or the mutimeter should indicate battery voltage. Do this for both horns.

If you can tell that the relay shifts and you have battery voltage at the horn connector either the horns are defective or you have a shitty ground where the horn bracket bolts to the frame.

Any other indication ( no battery voltage or relay not working or relay shifting but still no power would indicate a defective horn relay or a break in the wiring.

 

Looks like my horn stopped working as well. 2012, not in the recall. Horn goes off with alarm, no other time. Fuse and relay replaced/swapped with known good. Spiral cable?

 

Sounds like it.
Cruise working? ABS light on?

Op, pull ur horns and check for power at the connector.
If theres power, ground the mount and try it again.
One of mine only worked when it wanted, it was the ground.
The mounting point is the ground and mine actually broke off!
Wire brush the mounting point and remount it.

 

This ^^

 

Cruise and ABS work, no warning lights. Radio controls also work. Just the horn doesn't work when pressed.

So in that diagram, how does the horn work when the alarm is activated? Or is that a seperate circuit that independently provides 12V and a path to ground for the horns?

What's the consensus on replacement spiral cables? eBay/Amazon specials or the OEM?

 

I would guess the alarm is a seperate 12v input and the mount is still the ground so your horns work, just not thru the steering wheel switch.

I replaced the original spiral with the $230 one the first time it went out and went with the $12 ebay one this time.
So far its fine guess I'll find out...

 

What jimmyh is saying is the steering wheel horn button completes the ground and activates the circuit thru the relay & fuse and activates the horns.
When mine first quit I bypassed the steering wheel and added a horn switch and the horns worked.
Then my cruise control quit a few months later and I had to learn about the spiral cable/clockspring.
Do this, pull your steering wheel, most come off without a puller once you remove the nut, mine does easily.
Disconnect the single wire and touch it to the steering column.
If the horns honk its your spiral.

 

I will add my experience.

My 2015 experienced intermittent tone changes when the temp dropped below 45 degrees. From brand new it did this. I bought it January 2015 and it did it off the lot. 100% of the time when you pressed the horn button, it would get a high pitch metallic sound then normal and up again. I waited a year and then had them go after it at the dealer. Before I brought it in I installed Hellas just to eliminate a variable. They worked flawlessly. I had no intention of using them as they really sound like they belong on a Subaru or some compact car. Loud as hell though. I just had access to them. I put the old horns on issue was back. Dealer changed horns and they seemed to work better and in freezing weather they often but not always had the issue. So new horns changed the issue, but did not eliminate it. Brought it back in and they went for the clock spring. Changed nothing. 24K miles so I doubt the clock spring was the issue. Fast forward to today, I am scheduled to go in and have it covered again. Now, depending upon where I touch the horn pad, it can change the tone. So, it could be the contact of the horn itself, or perhaps a ground or wiring issue. Again, issue only rears it's ugly head when it is below 45 degrees. The rest of the year it is fine.

It is annoying that it does this, but it is the only fault the truck has. I had 2003 TRD Dcab, 2008 TRD Dcab and now a 2015 TRD Dcab and never had any issues except a frame swap on the 2003(dealer did it with no hole in the frame, but I did not argue). I love the 4.0 motor with the TRD exhaust and have no intention of trading it on a 3rd Gen until they fix the issues and lackluster performance of it (and the grille).

 

Well at least its working so yeah could be a wiring issue or could be ice build up, mud dawbers get in there, mud etc.
Mine always worked until it quit working and mine was the spiral that fixed that.
But that intermittant tone thing drove me nuts.
I never knew what tone i was gonna get when i hit the horn. Its funny, i never use it but it bugged the crap out of me.
It should work right when I hit it right?
Maybe Im ocd but still.
Fixing the mount fixed my intermittant tone problem, now it sounds like it should everytime I honk at a squirrel or a deer

 

It should work every time. They did on cars 100 years ago, so it's not a new tech thing Intermittent is annoying a hell.

Based upon what you said, I am going to go after the grounding. I will just run a wire to the body ground and see if that helps. Sand some paint off the mounts. Get a little dielectric grease on there. Who knows. The Hellas worked perfectly but had different metal brackets than the stock horn. They were similar thin stacked metal rectangular plates.

 

maybe the horn itself?

 

Also a possibility