I am interested in installing an after market air horn while also
keeping the OE horn in my 1990 Miata.
I like the safety aspect of an air horn for a Miata. However an air
horn might be excessive if all you want to do is to get the driver in
front of you to notice that the light has turned green.
I seem to recall reading, quite some time ago, about a setup that would
allow for the OE horn to be used for a gentle toot by quickly tapping on
the horn activator. A quick tap would not invoke the air horn. The air
horn could only be activated by a continuous depressing of the horn
activator.
I am aware of the possibility of setting up a switch to go from one horn
to the other, but as I recall, the article I read about this method did
not require a switch. ( I seem to remember this setup referred to as
"Fred’s Method" , but I could be wrong about that).
Any advice on how I might go about this dual setup would be appreciated.
Rick.
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Rick LaPrairie <lapr…@gov.on.ca> wrote:
>I am interested in installing an after market air horn while also
>keeping the OE horn in my 1990 Miata.
>I like the safety aspect of an air horn for a Miata. However an air
>horn might be excessive if all you want to do is to get the driver in
>front of you to notice that the light has turned green.
>I seem to recall reading, quite some time ago, about a setup that would
>allow for the OE horn to be used for a gentle toot by quickly tapping on
>the horn activator. A quick tap would not invoke the air horn. The air
>horn could only be activated by a continuous depressing of the horn
>activator.
>I am aware of the possibility of setting up a switch to go from one horn
>to the other, but as I recall, the article I read about this method did
>not require a switch. ( I seem to remember this setup referred to as
>"Fred’s Method" , but I could be wrong about that).
>Any advice on how I might go about this dual setup would be appreciated.
There was a brief remark in a Miata Magazine (about a year ago??)
to put in long feed tubes on the airhorn and leave the OEM horn
installed. I think it was in the "On the Market" section
discussion of (CRI?) airhorns. Maybe someone else can fill
in more details.
Leon
—
Leon van Dommelen I am not responsible for what I say.
domme…@zmiata.net–>remove z! White 1996 PEP Sebring Miata: Bozo.
http://www.eng.fsu.edu/~dommelen See my list of goodies.
"The First Amendment is interested in the truth." – K. Starr.
- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -
Rick LaPrairie <lapr…@gov.on.ca> wrote:
>I am interested in installing an after market air horn while also
>keeping the OE horn in my 1990 Miata.
>I like the safety aspect of an air horn for a Miata. However an air
>horn might be excessive if all you want to do is to get the driver in
>front of you to notice that the light has turned green.
>I seem to recall reading, quite some time ago, about a setup that would
>allow for the OE horn to be used for a gentle toot by quickly tapping on
>the horn activator. A quick tap would not invoke the air horn. The air
>horn could only be activated by a continuous depressing of the horn
>activator.
>I am aware of the possibility of setting up a switch to go from one horn
>to the other, but as I recall, the article I read about this method did
>not require a switch. ( I seem to remember this setup referred to as
>"Fred’s Method" , but I could be wrong about that).
It’s no big deal to run a switch from the horns so you could select one
or the other. I just hooked up both the OEM horn and the air horn relay
together and put a switch on the relay ground leg. Voila, in theory I
could have both horns go off or the OEM horn only. In practice, I kept
bumping the switch accidentally (it was under the dash) and it would
be stuck in the kinder and gentler position. Result was I would invariably
get a "meep-meep" when a blast was needed. I took out the switch.
The other method is to make the hose between the compressor and horn
long, so it will swell and absorb the initial spin-up of the compressor.
In theory, if the OEM horn is still wired up, it will meep. Then if
you keep the horn button on, the air horns eventually go off. Never
tried it. I made the hose as short as possible.
A horn is for horning. A gentle toot toot may be ignored. Go for the
air horns.
Harry
Leon van Dommelen (dommelen@delete_spam.SPAMeng.fsu.edu) wrote:
:
: There was a brief remark in a Miata Magazine (about a year ago??)
: to put in long feed tubes on the airhorn and leave the OEM horn
: installed. I think it was in the "On the Market" section
: discussion of (CRI?) airhorns. Maybe someone else can fill
: in more details.
The long feed is probably not necessary. After being pleased with
the results of the CRI horn install on my ’95, I decided that it’s
garage mate (F250 Supercab) also needed a horn upgrade. So I ordered
air horns from JC Whitney and installed them along with the factory
horns. In order to get the best response, I installed the new horns
with a shortened (about 4" IIRC) feed tube and the horn relay. It is
still easy to tap the horn button for a toot on the factory horns,
or when necessary, hold the button long enough for the air horns to
kick in. This type of air horn will *always* have a delay since the
compressor needs at least a split second to spin up.
—
Hank Barta White Oak Software Inc.
hba…@wwa.com Predictable Systems by Design.(tm)
Beautiful Sunny Winfield, Illinois
OR you can go to your friendly local junkyard (American or German) and pick
up a new horn for $5. The early american cars had a great note, as do some
of the more recent German (VW’s in particular) cars. Picked up a dual-horn
setup off of a GTI and installed it in same-location using same wiring.
Works great.
Scott.
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Rick LaPrairie wrote in message <352BBA4E.EDE95…@gov.on.ca>…
>I am interested in installing an after market air horn while also
>keeping the OE horn in my 1990 Miata.
>I like the safety aspect of an air horn for a Miata. However an air
>horn might be excessive if all you want to do is to get the driver in
>front of you to notice that the light has turned green.
>I seem to recall reading, quite some time ago, about a setup that would
>allow for the OE horn to be used for a gentle toot by quickly tapping on
>the horn activator. A quick tap would not invoke the air horn. The air
>horn could only be activated by a continuous depressing of the horn
>activator.
>I am aware of the possibility of setting up a switch to go from one horn
>to the other, but as I recall, the article I read about this method did
>not require a switch. ( I seem to remember this setup referred to as
>"Fred’s Method" , but I could be wrong about that).
>Any advice on how I might go about this dual setup would be appreciated.
>Rick.