I've got the horn!!

[wannab-x]

Hello! I’ve taken my TZS for an MOT today, and she’s failed.


On the horn.



Please can I have advice/assistance on how to get it sorted in time for my free retest on Monday. Just bear in mind I’m not a motor engineer…

I can/will provide liquid refreshment of your choice (within reason!) if there’s anyone who could pop in & have a look over the weekend – I’m based near Windsor.



Thanks!!


Andrew

[jeremy]

The proper horns are behind the front bumper in front of the near side wheel. If you look through the grill under the bumper to your extreme right when facing the car you can see them. When one of mine failed I was able to revive it by pushing and pulling the connectors on their terminals using a collection of steel rods and bits of wood - highly scientific but saved me removing the bumper or the inner arch trim.

If you don't want to take the bumper off have a look at the GSF or Eurocarparts web site on-line shops and I think one sells a universal horn for about £8. The wiring is probably around the headlight somewhere and I'm sure you could find somewhere to bolt the thing.

HINT - if its got an opening or trumpet - fix it so it points DOWNWARDS - to keep the rain out.

[mat_fenwick]

One story I heard (not sure whether this is an internet myth or not but it might make you smile) was about someone who had failed the MOT on the horn. Unsure about where in the wiring the fault was, he ran a wire from the battery one one side of the horn, then ran a wire from the other horn terminal, out from under the bonnet and in through the drivers door! To sound the horn he simply earthed it against some exposed metal.
The story goes that the tester had to (reluctantly) pass it as there was nothing in the regulations to say HOW the horn had to be operated...

[Doz]

How about mounting one of those old fashioned "honk honk" type of comedy bulb things to the door....

Seriously though, it's most likely a corroded connector on the horn itself , or sometimes the things just sieze up and need a good bob with the appropriate sized birmingham screwdriver to coax them back into life... I had a 2300 Magnum that I had to do that to regularly

Best check those connections before applying brute force, however! F8 in the fusebox it's it's supply fuse, and that's a quick check without having to resort to bumper removal and brute force.

If it has siezed up, it may still "click" slightly when you press the horn. You'll need somebody listening at the front to hear it though (and hope it doesn't spring into life during testing or you won't be popular!!)

[mountainmanUK]

Might also be muck in the switch contacts on the steering column.
I had that problem with a previous BX.

[sleepy0905]

Thats good news that all she failed on is the horn you can just get at it under the passenger front corner of the bumper I think you have to move the wing liner a bit but it is held on with one 13mm bolt and either a single connector or a double connector some are earthed through the mounting bolt.

[stuart_hedges]

I'm shocked and disappointed to see a regular poster advocating violence against a defenceless and probably operative horn mechanism instead of a proper fix. Ban this member at once.

Oh what, sorry?

It's a Citroen - it'll most likely be crappy wiring. Jiggle about every connector you can see while spraying switch cleaner liberally around. Do the Good Luck Citroen Wiring Dance. Have a cup of tea. Spray some more switch cleaner in increasingly unlikely places.

Oh, and do all the stuff other members ^ have suggested too.

Hey presto, your horn will spring into life.

[wannab-x]

Thanks for the tips, guys. I'll have to have a go over the weekend & see what I can do. It almost looks like there's a connector unplugged in there - seems to be a cable ending in a white connector which isn't plugged into anything, plus there's a green connector behond the headlight which doesn't connect either... strange.

Oh, and the side plate on the carb is missing - where can I get a replacement, do you think??

[jeremy]

Impact engineering often successfully revives horns - which contain contacts which corrode over time. A good sharp tap can start the things - but I think the connections to the rest of the wiring are more likely to be at fault.

[wannab-x]

Might try the dance, Stuart.


But could you show it to me first??

[stuart_hedges]

Disconnected wires (I've seen them referred to as "orphans") seem to be a unique and inspiring part of the Citroen underbonnet experience.

If your car is actually a GSA, you'll notice that the insulation on every single wire is green and you may never have a full night's sleep again because of the horror of it all.

If you meant that the *wire* is green, you've found your problem. Get in there with switch cleaner, wire wool and elbow grease.

[stuart_hedges]

I only do the dance at midnight when it's full moon. Holding a multimeter and praying to the Mighty Green Octopus.

'til then, you're on your own.

[DavidRutherford]

You may also find it helpful to read the wiring prayer:

Our Multimeter, which art in the toolbox,
Hallowed be thy probes,
Thy battery come,
Thy will be used, for resistance as well as voltage.
Give us this day our daily reading,
And forgive us our short circuits, as we forgive those that short circuit against us,
And lead us not into bodges,
But deliver us from scotchlocks,
For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the annoying continuity beeper, for ever. Amen.


Ahem.

How long has it been since the horn last worked? To test it, remove it, and using a couple of test leads on it, connect it straight across the battery. If you are now deaf, the wiring is faulty. If it barely made a noise, you might be able to clean it out and make it work, but a new horn unit is usually about £2.99 from a decent motor factors.

The column stalk switch is very rarely the problem, but if the horn checks out OK, and the wiring looks clean and bright, then it may be the culpret.

[DavidRutherford]

The story goes that the tester had to (reluctantly) pass it as there was nothing in the regulations to say HOW the horn had to be operated...

I've heard similar with an inoperative screen washer. The car owner simply came back 10 mins later with a fairly-up-lipsquid bottle full of screenwash mix, that he had "installed" in the car. To wash the screen, you simply hold the bottle out of the window, point at the windscreen, and squeeze.

... another (reluctant) pass.

[Doz]

I'm shocked and disappointed to see a regular poster advocating violence against a defenceless and probably operative horn mechanism instead of a proper fix. Ban this member at once.

Maybe I failed to make myself clear Bop it one as a last resort ... it also helps to reduce stress