Loud Air Horns

Sounds like your steering column may be grounding out somewhere. 

These are pretty loud and mine have lasted over 12 years:

https://www.amazon.com/HELLA-0...words=auto+air+horns

But I agree with Rusty - sounds like you have an intermittent short to ground somewhere.  I have no idea how SE wires the horn circuit (and there are several variations on how it's done, with isolated or grounded steering columns) so Carey would be best for that info and then chase it from there.

Good luck......

The most Bizarre thing I ever heard was this guy bought an air operated Train Whistle from his local model train store. The size was 12" long by 1.5 ", used a solenoid operated air valve and a small 13 cu ft scuba tank. I'll tell you what !!!  If he was behind you, it would scare the crap out of you. It really did sound like a train was coming down on you.  he said the tank of air lasted about a year with normal use and it was regulated down from 3K PSI to 150 PSI.

Last year I bought a twin pair of horns. I was at the Pomona swap meet again. There is a guy who is always out there and all he sells is horns. He has a bunch of them screwed to a bench and you can test them with a button. (It's hard to cover both ears and push those buttons ) he has air horns as well. Thats how I chose mine. Now my car doesn't have that puny little nasal "beep-beep"! Now my car  sounds more like the horn on a 58 Cadillac land yacht !.......Bruce

I would like a diesel truck horn for my Toyota. I've been thinking about the logistics of it for a while now. It would make getting cut off several times per trip to and from work a little more bearable. I just don't have the room under the hood for the large horn. They're 2' long. 

I'm not sure what Henry puts on his IMs. but I suspect they're either Hella Supertone horns, or FIAMM Freeway Blaster horns.

There's another horn that sounds loud, called Wicked Loud horns, but I can't find anyone that still sells them.

Loud !

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JfNePl15aYY

 

Those Fiamm Blasters are what I used to have in my F250 Diesel - Finally got some horns to go with the diesel feel.........

I thought about going with the wolo setup. In  the end I wanted something more vintage sounding. I wound up going with 60's - 70's Cadillac 4 note horns (A, C, D, F), plus the 15" and 18" Delco trumpets.

(The trumpets I have are similar to the one shown above. My two are from an earlier car.)

 (my 4 note horns are identical to the ones above. I stole these images from the interwebs. )

I wired them up to a relay with negative signal trigger. The button to activate them is on the column. I'd love to rewire the original horn button to power them all.

 

 

Rusty S posted:

Sounds like your steering column may be grounding out somewhere. 

The horns generally (almost always) work by being powered 100% of the time. The horn button grounds the circuit, and the horn sounds.

If the circuit was intermittently grounding out (as mine does on a LH turn) the horn would sound.

It sounds like a poorly made part. 

That's what I was thinking Stan. I'm too lazy to install a serious air horn setup, but I have Carey & the winter :-)
>

X2 what Ron said.  Whatever Henry at IM uses is a very good quality horn(s). 

TRP posted:

I thought about going with the wolo setup. In  the end I wanted something more vintage sounding. I wound up going with 60's - 70's Cadillac 4 note horns (A, C, D, F), plus the 15" and 18" Delco trumpets.

(The trumpets I have are similar to the one shown above. My two are from an earlier car.)

 (my 4 note horns are identical to the ones above. I stole these images from the interwebs. )

I wired them up to a relay with negative signal trigger. The button to activate them is on the column. I'd love to rewire the original horn button to power them all.

 

 

No photos Ted.

aircooled posted:

The most Bizarre thing I ever heard was this guy bought an air operated Train Whistle from his local model train store. The size was 12" long by 1.5 ", used a solenoid operated air valve and a small 13 cu ft scuba tank. I'll tell you what !!!  If he was behind you, it would scare the crap out of you. It really did sound like a train was coming down on you.  he said the tank of air lasted about a year with normal use and it was regulated down from 3K PSI to 150 PSI.

Last year I bought a twin pair of horns. I was at the Pomona swap meet again. There is a guy who is always out there and all he sells is horns. He has a bunch of them screwed to a bench and you can test them with a button. (It's hard to cover both ears and push those buttons ) he has air horns as well. Thats how I chose mine. Now my car doesn't have that puny little nasal "beep-beep"! Now my car  sounds more like the horn on a 58 Cadillac land yacht !.......Bruce

Bruce,

In California you may install a train horn on your car but it is illegal to operate the horn while on public roads.

I have the inexpensive Hella air horns. Install was easy. Loud, about 120 dB. About $30 on slezbay.

I've got a 600 pound church bell I'm looking to mount over the front beam...

This is another thing on my list. I like the high pitched "Ferrari" sound.

Fiamm makes many different horns and you can hear them on their site.

http://www.fiamm.com/en/northa...ustici/prodotti.aspx

The only problem then, is finding who carries the one you like.

I kept the stock 'beep-beep' horn (activated by steering wheel horn button). I use this for those "response to thumbs up" or "friendly acknowledgement".

I also installed a high-pitched air horn (Ferrari sound) using heavy-gauge wire with compressor close to the battery and run through a relay. Activated by a horn button on the dash. I use this for those "HEY, WATCH WHERE THE FU*K YOU"RE GOING" moments. 

I did the exact same thing in my 4-runner.

@musbjim.  What is the make & model of your air horn?

Tom - it's just whatever my local Pep Boys had on their shelves. Cost $30. Very very loud shrill tone!

I did the Fiamm Triple Riviera horns. Very euro sounding with the high pitchs but maybe it is bc I have them pointed to the ground but they are not that loud. 

Mine:

Tom - My air horns sound similar to Gordon's.

I finally got around to installing some horns. I made an aluminum bracket that everything was bolted to, then two bolts to attach it to the car. Spyders don't have very much room, as the Speedsters do, forward of the front beam for mounting things, so I mounted mine behind it. I need to leave room up front for my sway bar anyway.

Ignore the Mickey Mouse fuel line and filter installation. It came that way. While I was under there, I took measurements for a solution to fix that cheesyness.

No more Meep Meep for me.

I listen to the trumpet of “Jesus”  while the world hears a different sound

I never drive faster than my Angels can fly....

 

Well, I've been listening to the trumpets of Amazon.

I wanted something louder than meep-meep, but maybe more Teutonic than the air horns. I know this is a deeply personal thing, but for me, the air horns don't sound quite indignant enough for a German car.

Besides, I'm lazy, and wanted to avoid fabricating a bracket if I could.

It turns out these simple Hella horns have just that arrogant, annoying sound I was looking for and, through sheer brilliance, I was able to mount them in the same spot as the stock horn on my VS. I just subbed in a slightly longer bolt and arranged some flat washers (for spacing) and lock washers (for locking) to keep the horns in place without interfering with each other:

 

They sound like this.

Thing is, I hardly ever use a horn. When texting millennials start drifting into my lane, I figure it's best to use the steering and the brakes to avoid disaster before wasting precious milliseconds sounding a horn they probably won't hear through their noise-canceling headphones anyway.

It occurs to me that I installed these three months ago and have yet to use them in anger.

 

Have you tried the dual trumpet Hella horns, Hi/Lo,  they are the stock units on a newer IM.  They are quite loud and just a few decibels off of an air horn.  

Voltage: 12V
• Low Tone Frequency: 400 Hz
• High Tone Frequency: 500 Hz
• Sound Level at 6.5ft (2 Meters): 110 dB

Twin trumpet sound in the first few secs

@Carlos G: One more horn and you could play Dixie like the Duke boys LOL! Of course, I'm just kidding you. Your bracketry looks good. I don't like that crimped looking fuel hose either.

I have a couple Subaru horns in front of my beam, clearing the custom swaybar. Not meep-meep, but not out of place either. Loud enough to get attention. Came off a 90 Subaru Legacy that I stripped the motor and computer/harness out of.

Alan Merklin posted:

I never drive faster than my Angels can fly....

My angels are stupid fast .....

Danny, to tell you the truth, I had those twin trumpets on my car and saw this advertising years ago for a screaming banshee airhorn that you could keep the existing horn for polite toots, if there is such a thing and when you hold it down it activates both the air horn and the car horn and also flashes the high beam headlights.  I now use this but Lane is right it does not get used much.  

You might be surprised when you need a horn.  I was stuck in traffic on a small street in my neighborhood and a pickup started backing down the driveway towards me (the lawn was elevated).  I reached for my horn and it didn’t work (Wolo days).  I was about to bail out of the car when he saw me and stopped.

Carey subsequently installed twin loud Hella horns behind the grills.  Plenty loud and no more blown fuses or response delay like I had with the air horn.

i don’t use my horn to express anger only warning and I use it all too often when people are cutting in front of me because they can’t see me.

The previous owner of my car installed a system that imitates various emergency vehicle sirens. It is loud, effective and causes most people to get out of the way and then wonder why.

@DannyP  I'd probably get more respect around here if I had a horn that played Dixie.

As far as alternate horn sounds and such, this guy had a great idea for a horn. idea.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lv8wqnk_TsA

I'm not that polite. I'd rather have a PA system so I could talk to the person ahead of me. "Hey, the pedal on the right is the GAS pedal!"

That whole fuel pump/ filter thing under there is Mickey Mouse for sure. I'm going to make an aluminum plate to mount the pump and filters to, all in a line. This plate will then be mounted on the front beam. I'll start a new thread when I get to that point. It's time to replace those filters anyway.

Yeah, I wouldn't have installed this silly thing, but it was already on the car and I just haven't found a compelling enough reason to remove it. I imagine the first time I get in trouble for imitating an emergency vehicle will be the impetus I need to take action.

Frankly, I rarely employ it.

@Tom Blankinship, you are welcome to take a look at my air horns.

 

Thanks Michael,

I upgraded to the Hella horns a couple of years ago and I’m content.

Sorry, I didn't notice the date at the start of the thread.