Tuning Need more poop...

[Ralf S.]

Luckily this weekend I replaced the rather forlorn horn on Gerrard with something a bit more like it, in the form of a Fiamm Air Blaster doodah, fitted in the same location - inside the driver's side wheel arch.

I immediately got to test it on the local A-road.. a Virgin Broadband van joining from the left seemed to think that "merging with traffic" is me moving out of the way somehow, even when the second lane is chocka-block with faster cars. I had to squeeze over between him and a Range Rover Discovery (which have loud horns! ) to avoid a shunt... Me with the missus and baby Ralfetta (aka Queen of the Sith) in the car too..

Even with my newly installed 115db, the drug-addict retarded cock-womble van driver didn't seem to hear the horn, even though his window was wound down... and afterwards he seemed completely oblivious that he nearly made Gerrard a Disco' sandwich... I should have lobbed a water bottle at him, through his open window to stir him from his slumber maybe..

Anyway, in the Ralf vs Retard arms race, I decided that another horn in the other wheel arch would be a useful instrument to have at my disposal.

How would I best wire it in? I'm thinking... run a feed from the Fiat horn wiring (that is currently only feeding the relay that activates the new Fiamm air-horn) to a second relay.. and then wiring the second relay and a second air-horn to the battery (mirroring the setup on the driver's side).

The car's electrics will only be feeding the two relays, rather than the original Fiat horn and I presume a couple of relays isn't going to stress the original Fiat horn wiring?


Ralf S.

 

[portland_bill]

Sounds ok. If the original wiring is only switching relays should be fine.

Before mounting it, test it there, with engine running. Make sure if possible it is mounted away form any ECU or similar.

Fitted a pair of Fiamm electromagnetics on a Seicento many years ago. Only place with space was up under a wheelarch, behind the liner. Sadly, engine ECU was on the other side of the inner wing. If horn was used when engine running, the electromagnetic force created would upset the ECU. No affect on engine running, but would light the EML. It would extinguish at next restart, but not something to continue with. nowhere else to put them, so back to the original squeak.

 

[Ralf S.]

I think Gerrard's ECU is behind the driver's side headlamp (JTD) so it's only 12" away from the original horn position (where I have the new air horn)... and so far I didn't notice anything weird, except the brakes became a bit spongey since I fitted it... but that can't be related...

I'll give it a go and see how many fuses it burns up..


Ralf S.

 

[Davren]

I decided that another horn in the other wheel arch would be a useful instrument to have at my disposal.

The JTD intercooler (if fitted) and associated pipe work is behind the left wheel arch, there may not be space to fit another horn in there.
.

 

[Ralf S.]

Yes.. I think you're right. There's a heap of clag on the passenger side... airbox and intercooler etc. I'll have to take the liner out and have a look.

Ralf S.

 

[Yellow Peril]

Get yourself a Stebel Nautilus air horn - they'll hear you in the next town...

 

[Ralf S.]

Get yourself a Stebel Nautilus air horn - they'll hear you in the next town...

I just need to be able to melt Retards at 20 paces... but I'll have a look at the Nautilus.

I might install horn #2 with an switch/isolated circuit so I can deploy it just when I need to.

Saves accidentally killing the MOT man for example...



Ralf S.

 

[portland_bill]

As an addition to the horn, I'd quite like a loud recording of a blood-curdling scream coupled with the squeal of tyres. I guess that should frighten a few into moving out of the way.

 

[jimboy]

I answered to a similar thread to this some time ago & firstly had a cheap copy Stebel compact horn which I squeezed into my daily hack. It did the job :devil: up until some knob wrote my wee van off. My daily driver now has sufficiently loud horn, but that's no help to you. The Stebel is dual & compact into one unit.

Good to have a decent horn......

 

[g8rpi]

Sounds ok. If the original wiring is only switching relays should be fine.

Before mounting it, test it there, with engine running. Make sure if possible it is mounted away form any ECU or similar.

Fitted a pair of Fiamm electromagnetics on a Seicento many years ago. Only place with space was up under a wheelarch, behind the liner. Sadly, engine ECU was on the other side of the inner wing. If horn was used when engine running, the electromagnetic force created would upset the ECU. No affect on engine running, but would light the EML. It would extinguish at next restart, but not something to continue with. nowhere else to put them, so back to the original squeak.

Electromagnetic horns generate a lot more interference than air horns.. This is due to the interrupter contact. Electrically they resemble a "spark" radio transmitter. A suppessor capacitor will cure the worst of it, an old fasioned igntion "condenser" is ideal.



Robert G8RPI.

 

[Ralf S.]

Electromagnetic horns generate a lot more interference than air horns.. This is due to the interrupter contact. Electrically they resemble a "spark" radio transmitter. A suppessor capacitor will cure the worst of it, an old fasioned igntion "condenser" is ideal.



Robert G8RPI.

My "old" airhorn was a cheapo Nautilus copy I bought on Fleabay just to get the car through an MOT. But it lasted just 18 months before the "High" tone packed up and it started resembling an old London taxicab. But it worked okay while it worked.. no interference noticeable.

The new horn is a Fiamm Air Blast (or something). It was four times the price of the cheapo one, so I hope it lasts at least 4 times as long... I never thought of horns as consumables before...

The original horn was a strange one. It was a single snail horn ("Low" tone) and it was fine, apart from resembling an old London taxicab..... but I'm sure there should have been a "High" tone too...? I couldn't see any more wiring or brackets to suggest it was part of a pair though (my old Alfa 145 has a "T" bracket for example). Just curious..


Ralf S.