14 replies to this topic

[crmpicco]

Hi,

I put my Cooper back on the road at the end of April and since then the horn has not worked. It passed a MOT in April so I presume they checked this, whether or not it was glossed over as some garages do i'm unsure. Neither horn button works, however I got a small horn-like noise out of the left button at one point, this, to be fair, was in May.

What is likely to be the problem with a malfunctioning horn? Could it be the fuse or something more serious? IIRC, the horn has a dedicated fuse.

I have been advised that there is a rotational coupler behind the steering wheel, however I am VERY wary of having to remove the steering wheel and I have to admit it's not something I would fancy doing.

Any advice appreciated.

Cheers,
Picco

[newnham500]

Any advice? Ok here goes, i had the same problem with mine. i got the wd40, spayed it up the hole, tested it, and it didnt work, did it again and it started working. That was my fix for it

[newnham500]

and to be fair, i think i hit it a few times.

[crmpicco]

Any advice? Ok here goes, i had the same problem with mine. i got the wd40, spayed it up the hole, tested it, and it didnt work, did it again and it started working. That was my fix for it

Apologies if this is an stoopid question, but what hole did you spray it up? Is this in or around the switch on the steering wheel or are you talking about the horn? Cheers for getting back to me on this mate.

[newnham500]

thats cool dont worry, the horn i just sprayed it in the trumpet hole, i believe i took the horn off and and held it so the wd would work its way in. Then connected it up again and bam, it was working.

[97SportPack]

I have the same problem

[bcjames]

I'd check the horn is getting power when it should, and is earthed. Could be worth checking the contacts on the plug socket and making sure they are clean, or that it's even plugged in correctly.

You could also remove the airbag and check the horn connection under there, mine had an issue there. This doesn't involve removing the steering wheel, but you need to disconnect the battery for half an hour before playing with the SRS system. To replace the coupler requires removing the wheel, but it's just one nut and it's easy to line up again assuming to parked with the wheels straight.

What fuse do you have listed just for the horn? Looking in the glovebox handbook, I can't see a separate listing.

[crmpicco]

thats cool dont worry, the horn i just sprayed it in the trumpet hole, i believe i took the horn off and and held it so the wd would work its way in. Then connected it up again and bam, it was working.

Really? WD40 straight in the horn where the noise emanates from? I'll give it a try. Thanks for the tip.

I have the same problem

Did it just stop working for you mate? Or was it gradual?

I'd check the horn is getting power when it should, and is earthed. Could be worth checking the contacts on the plug socket and making sure they are clean, or that it's even plugged in correctly.

You could also remove the airbag and check the horn connection under there, mine had an issue there. This doesn't involve removing the steering wheel, but you need to disconnect the battery for half an hour before playing with the SRS system. To replace the coupler requires removing the wheel, but it's just one nut and it's easy to line up again assuming to parked with the wheels straight.

What fuse do you have listed just for the horn? Looking in the glovebox handbook, I can't see a separate listing.

Hmmm...maybe I was wrong with believing there is a dedicated fuse just for the horn. I was sure that was right, maybe i'm wrong. I'll take the horn off and have a good look at it, spray some WD40 on the connectors and in the trumpet hole itself. The fact that it was making a noise, although slightly muted, then stopped makes me think that a wee clean with WD40 might do the trick...we'll soon find out though.

[bcjames]

Yes if it's intermittent then I'd take a guess at rusty connectors or something similar first. Some contact cleaner and a bit of emery should sort that. The horn wires under the airbag are nice bendy ones, if anything I'd think it would be the airbag wire to go wrong up there first as its much stiffer and heavier. Mine had a kink in it and stop working, but the horn wires just flop around happily. In case you want to check it, theres a connection inside the steering wheel for the horn to coupler, and then under the steering column upper shroud is another connector from the coupler to the loom.

In the Rover handbook the horn is listed under B6, sharing that fuse with the alarm system.

Good luck getting it fixed

[R1minimagic]

Why not take the horn off and check it by wiring directly to a power supply or your battery with some bits of wire?

I have broken loads of MPi minis and a lot of them dont have working horns (i check all electrical items before starting). I then test all the horns with a spare battery and some wires, about 50% of them have stopped working, so there is nothing wrong with the rest of the car!

[bcjames]

Why not take the horn off and check it by wiring directly to a power supply or your battery with some bits of wire?

Haha yes that's the way to do it. It's too easy to over think what to do on a reply here! It at least rules the horn itself out.

[connor_cooper]

If it turns out to be the rotary coupler, If I remember rightly there are about 6 spare wires which pass through the rotary coupler. So you can just redirect the horn to go through the different wires instead. This resolved my issue when my horn didn't work.

[crmpicco]

OK, I have an update on this problem.

I have removed the horn from the car, sprayed some WD40 in the trumpet hole and reconnecting. This hasn't had any effect and the horn still doesn't work. I've disconnected the horn and brought it inside over night to let it "steep" in some WD40 overnight with the hope that it helps free-up whatever caused the problem to start with. This is more in hope than expectation to be honest.

The recommendation to connect a positive lead from the battery to the horn...would I require something like this ?

A "bad earth" has been suggested...interesting, as I had a problem with my Sony stereo last week that seemed to just clear up of it's own accord.

What do you suggest I do? Take a +ve from the battery? Try a new horn or something else?

Edited by crmpicco, 09 January 2012 - 08:16 PM.

[disasterbus]

My MPi has a similar but slightly different problem.
It was laid up over the winter (battery removed etc) and I've just put it back on the road and found my horn no longer works. There is power to the horn itself as it goes off when I set the factory fit alarm off deliberately but total silence when i press the buttons on the s/wheel.

Any suggestions please?

Thanks!

[disasterbus]

Hi,

I put my Cooper back on the road at the end of April and since then the horn has not worked. It passed a MOT in April so I presume they checked this, whether or not it was glossed over as some garages do i'm unsure. Neither horn button works, however I got a small horn-like noise out of the left button at one point, this, to be fair, was in May.

What is likely to be the problem with a malfunctioning horn? Could it be the fuse or something more serious? IIRC, the horn has a dedicated fuse.

I have been advised that there is a rotational coupler behind the steering wheel, however I am VERY wary of having to remove the steering wheel and I have to admit it's not something I would fancy doing.

Any advice appreciated.

Cheers,
Picco

Got mine sorted yesterday - it was the rotational coupler - £119 + VAT from Rimmer Bros etc but I got one from eBay for £15.00
Just FYI they are the same as the ones in MGTF, Rover 200/400 etc if you are hunting round the scrapyard for one.