Horn intermittently works?

[rileyb76]

Guys,
I have a 2010 limited and sometimes the horn works, sometimes it doesn't. What would make it work intermittently like this?

When its not working, I press all over the steering wheel pad just to test. Nothing. On other days, it works perfectly.

If it were a fuse, it wouldn't work at all correct?
Thank you

 

[flyrv9]

When you push on the pad, you're closing a momentary switch to complete the circuit and make the horn work. The switch is probably in or part of the pad. The airbag is also in there so you have to know what you're doing if you plan to dig into it. I would start by looking at the connections at the horn (horns) and see if anything is loose. Most use a slide on terminal lug that may be loose and work intermittantly.

 

[SATSTRAIL]

It could possibly be a problem with your spiral cable/clock spring assembly mounted behind your steering wheel. This is the device that allows electrical signals to be transmitted from your moving steering wheel to the stationary steering column where your wiring harness is. One way that you can do a quick test is press and hold the horn down as if you were trying to honk the horn and then rotate the steering wheel in different directions. If it starts working while you're turning the wheel that's a dead giveaway that the spiral cable is bad.

 

[Zach_F]

Maybe you used up all your honks for the month.

 

[rigtec]

Guys,
I have a 2010 limited and sometimes the horn works, sometimes it doesn't. What would make it work intermittently like this?

When its not working, I press all over the steering wheel pad just to test. Nothing. On other days, it works perfectly.

If it were a fuse, it wouldn't work at all correct?
Thank you

Hi Rileyb,

Try activating the horn by means of the 'PANIC BUTTON' on the key FOB. Doing this will eliminate/prove that the issue is NOT in the steering wheel e.g., spiral cable or related wiring. If the horn does work 'Everytime' using this method you're proving the horn relay and the two mechanical horns under the hood... here's the way the wiring is plotted:



The horn relay coil is HOT AT ALL TIMES ("see diagram") so the steering wheel pad/switch assm. only provides a ground to the relay coil, so if the fuse is good (I'll assume it is), and it works when using the panic button (which also provides a ground to the relay coil) then it should be safe to assume that there is a GND issue in the steering wheel assm.

When you press the panic button on the key FOB, you're just grounding the relay coil via the 'Main body ECU COMPU NETWORK' thus by-passing the steering wheel pad button. If the horn still doesn't work using the panic button, just remove the Green/Red wire from either one of the mechanical horns and run a jumper from the POS battery terminal to the POS (+) horn terminal; the one where the Green/Red wire was located.

If the horn works now then you've just proved that the mechanical horns are good. Now you can remove the horn relay located in the main fuse/relay box under the hood; there's a chart on the underside of the fusebox cover to help you locate the right relay:





Pull the relay out and inspect the four spaded terminals for rust, dirt or foreign matter on the terminals and in the sockets. Clean all of those parts good... you can even spray "Brake-Clean" on the terms and in their sockets to remove any logged in dirt! Now plug the relay back in and try it again. If the terms are numbered look for #85 & #86; these are the coil terminals. You can try connecting these to the pos and Neg battery terminals... it should click! If it doesn't make a sound then there is the most likely trouble; you can p/u a new 12v relay at any Auto-Zone. This should give you somewhere to begin looking for your trouble, and be sure to let us know how you're making out, 'Best to you',

rig

 

[rigtec]

...Just curious to know if the O.P. got his horn working properly...

 

[rileyb76]

Guys,
Thank you so much for the replies. I ran out of time this past weekend but will give this a shot in the coming days.

It is definitely still intermittent. It worked all weekend, but didn't today.

I did find this doing some searching although I'm not sure applicable it is to a '10 TR4.
Dr. Fix It: Weekend Mechanic: Repairing 2000 Toyota Sienna Horn

 

[rileyb76]

You guys are on it.

My horn didn't work today, EXCEPT when I turned the steering wheel! Strange. The alarm on the key fob works perfectly.

Does this definitely sound like a faulty spiral cable, like a poster above mentioned? Also, is it a complicated fix? Thank you

 

[rigtec]

You guys are on it.

My horn didn't work today, EXCEPT when I turned the steering wheel! Strange. The alarm on the key fob works perfectly.

Does this definitely sound like a faulty spiral cable, like a poster above mentioned? Also, is it a complicated fix? Thank you

Hi Riley,

I found the link that you posted: (Dr. Fix It: Weekend Mechanic: Repairing 2000 Toyota Sienna Horn) most interesting and informative; to say the least. And given the age of the vehicle in the article and your own truck (2010) made a lot of sense. The Spiral cable (power source) and the GND are easy to check because you're only checking for power at the horn switch, and then a GND source under the pad using and ohm meter.

I don't imagine the spiral cable would be too difficult to replace... remember: google is your friend! If it were my truck I would first remove the steering wheel pad then run a jumper from the S/W to a body ground just to see if there is a ground issue; and power supply is easy to check! I'll bet if you search the [MENTION=65614]Antman[/MENTION] thread you'll find all the relative information that you need to do the job! Thanks for posting that link... I'll bet I'm not the only member here who didn't know that the steering wheel ground isn't "HARD WIRED"!

rig, Cheers

 

[rileyb76]

Took the 4runner to the dealer today for service and got them to check the horn. Its the craziest thing. It will not work if the wheels are straight, but if you turn 90 degrees left or right it works like a champ.

Anyways, the service dept said the part plus labor would be $980! Ouch. He did say its possible the air bag could be affected from the bad spiral cable.

I'm not sure what I'll do as that is a chunk. What do you guys suggest?

 

[Silvr Bullet]

Took the 4runner to the dealer today for service and got them to check the horn. Its the craziest thing. It will not work if the wheels are straight, but if you turn 90 degrees left or right it works like a champ.

Anyways, the service dept said the part plus labor would be $980! Ouch. He did say its possible the air bag could be affected from the bad spiral cable.

I'm not sure what I'll do as that is a chunk. What do you guys suggest?

Where you ever able to fix the problem? I have the same issue and am hoping I don't have to replace the spiral cable. Thanks for any info you have found

 

[flyrv9]

If I were doing it, I'd first find out what the spiral - clock cable cost was. If most of that $980 is labor cost, I'd look into what's involved in changing it. I'm sure the wheel has to come apart and off; which means messing with the airbag. You may not want to go there. I'd also check to see if my airbag was on the recall list. If it is, then you'll be going back in there again sometime in the future.

You have a couple of options:

Let Toyota fix it
Buy a new one and fix it yourself
Get one from a junk yard and fix it yourself
Take yours out and repair it - if possible
Wire the horn to another switch and place that switch somewhere close

I guess it depends on how often you use your horn. The horn went out in my Nissan about 15 years ago and I haven't missed it!

 

[rileyb76]

Where you ever able to fix the problem? I have the same issue and am hoping I don't have to replace the spiral cable. Thanks for any info you have found

I haven't fixed it yet. I watched some youtube videos and it doesn't seem "too" complicated. I'm just scared to mess with anything connected to the airbags. If you find a good fix, please share.

 

[Silvr Bullet]

I haven't fixed it yet. I watched some youtube videos and it doesn't seem "too" complicated. I'm just scared to mess with anything connected to the airbags. If you find a good fix, please share.

So last weekend I went ahead and orders the spiral cable from a Toyota dealer because I really wanted to use OEM parts and it cost me $450 for the one with steering controls. It’s good to check the part against your vin because I almost orders the wrong part but the online dealer caught it and saved me a big mistake. I watched a couple of YouTube videos and decided to do it my self which is a bit nerve racking when messing with the airbag but the process is really easy and only took me 15min after disconnecting the battery and letting it sit for 20min. After putting it all back together and hooking up the battery the horn worked proper again. It’s a very straight forward job with minimal skill involved. You can 100% do it yourself!

 

[Kinetic]

So last weekend I went ahead and orders the spiral cable from a Toyota dealer because I really wanted to use OEM parts and it cost me $450 for the one with steering controls. It’s good to check the part against your vin because I almost orders the wrong part but the online dealer caught it and saved me a big mistake. I watched a couple of YouTube videos and decided to do it my self which is a bit nerve racking when messing with the airbag but the process is really easy and only took me 15min after disconnecting the battery and letting it sit for 20min. After putting it all back together and hooking up the battery the horn worked proper again. It’s a very straight forward job with minimal skill involved. You can 100% do it yourself!

About to attempt this repair, but wanted to ask first if the buttons on your steering wheel were working? All of my buttons work, but the horn does not work most of the time. Horn works in panic mode, but not from the steering wheel.

 

[seatia]

About to attempt this repair, but wanted to ask first if the buttons on your steering wheel were working? All of my buttons work, but the horn does not work most of the time. Horn works in panic mode, but not from the steering wheel.

It depends how many of the wires are broken in the clockspring as to how many of the buttons will not work. On mine no buttons worked.

I bought 3 clocksprings on line both on eBay and Amazon and paid about $25 for one and About $70 for another. They were packed 1000 miles away from the truck is why I got more clockprings. It's a common failure point so a backup is well worth it anyway.
BTW, it cured everything, horn and buttons.

https://www.toyota-4runner.org/5th-gen-t4rs/259875-clock-spring-airbag.html?highlight=horn

 

[Kinetic]

It depends how many of the wires are broken in the clockspring as to how many of the buttons will not work. On mine no buttons worked.

I bought 3 clocksprings on line both on eBay and Amazon and paid about $25 for one and About $70 for another. They were packed 1000 miles away from the truck is why I got more clockprings. It's a common failure point so a backup is well worth it anyway.
BTW, it cured everything, horn and buttons.

https://www.toyota-4runner.org/5th-gen-t4rs/259875-clock-spring-airbag.html?highlight=horn

Thank you for this quick reply! I pulled the trigger this evening and ordered one I found for ~$90. Hopefully it solves the issue!

 

[ArthurKotb]

About to attempt this repair, but wanted to ask first if the buttons on your steering wheel were working? All of my buttons work, but the horn does not work most of the time. Horn works in panic mode, but not from the steering wheel.

Since you can press the panic button and the horn works then you know the horns, wiring and relay work. Since your other buttons are working I would venture that it's not the clock spring cable either. I have a '99 Sienna and the horn was also intermittent. I opened it up and checked the contacts, adjusted, tuner cleaner, nothing helped. On some forum I found a text explanation of what the problem was, especially if all the other buttons worked.

There is a bearing on the shaft of the steering wheel that gets rusted and won't provide a good ground. I took off the steering wheel, air bag and clock spring cable, then shot WD-40 down the shaft. I put it all back together and it's worked ever since. That was in 2018.

Your component removal might be different, but I was able to remove my stuff without any instructions or video. In doing so I made a video in case I forgot the sequence. You can check it out on YouTube. Maybe it will save you some money.
1999 Sienna Horn Repair - Enhanced - YouTube