Horn honks intermittently when turning steering wheel

[themechanic]

Finally, after I had to prove that I made the purchase they said they never had an issue with any of these wheels before and since they don't carry them now there's nothing they can do. Fair enough since I bought the wheel over 3 years ago.

I ordered another wheel from Classic Industries which arrived yesterday. I took some comparison photos. The wheel from Goodmark is on the left and the one from CI is on the right. There are some big differences; namely the arc of the coil of hat spring and how close it sits to the center hub. The hub on the CI wheel is chamfered more. Everything on the CI wheel sits down flush and evenly with the plastic/hub.

I'll get some more photos after I install the CI wheel. My fingers are crossed.

 

[themechanic]

I swapped the Grant wheel for the Standard wheel from Classic Industries yesterday. I took photos each step in case I still had the horn issue. I didn't see any broken wires or damaged parts. I'm leaving the fratzog out for now while I try to find a NOS horn pad or get one of mine redone. I may put the old one in in the meantime.

 

[themechanic]

 

[themechanic]

I still have the horn honking every turn of the wheel. It will keep the horns on if I hold it in the place that is making contact then they go off with a slight turn in either direction. The only damage to the switch I saw was the little roller is flat on top and doesn't roll. Maybe because of the grease that was on it. I cleaned it off before installing the new wheel. The new wheel had some green grease on it I left alone thinking it must have a purpose.

I may have swapped the horn switch from 2771534 (w/full horn ring) to 2822126 (w/o full ring) when I swapped the Grant for the Goodmark wheel. The one installed is the better looking one of the two. Could that cause an intermittent problem?

I'm thinking of buying an expensive turn signal switch to see if that is the problem.

Guys, I need help here. What should I do next?

 

[khryslerkid]

Can you inspect the wires coming into and up the steering column. Make sure you don't have a wire worn through, grounding on the steering shaft.

Useing a ohms meter instead of having to listen to the horn blowing, (unless you don't mind), get the contact made like you described, and push and pull the wires going into the column. See if that interrupts the contact (horn blowing) without turning the wheel.

 

[themechanic]

Can you inspect the wires coming into and up the steering column. Make sure you don't have a wire worn through, grounding on the steering shaft.

Useing a ohms meter instead of having to listen to the horn blowing, (unless you don't mind), get the contact made like you described, and push and pull the wires going into the column. See if that interrupts the contact (horn blowing) without turning the wheel.

I should have said all the wires and the switch are practically new and were working just fine until I decided to change steering wheels which doesn't involve the wires. That will be the last thing I check since it's the most tedious. But thanks for the tip.

 

[khryslerkid]

I should have said all the wires and the switch are practically new and were working just fine until I decided to change steering wheels which doesn't involve the wires. That will be the last thing I check since it's the most tedious. But thanks for the tip.

Keep experimenting with things there. It's probably something simple. An ohms meter could possibly pinpoint it for you. Maybe it's the switch, but you need to verify this before spending the money. I would.

Good luck!

 

[themechanic]

I suspect that wheel on top the spring since it is the only thing damaged on a new switch.

 

[themechanic]

I bought a steering wheel puller kit today and pulled the Classic Industry wheel. It appears to be making contact on one side of the copper ring. Also, the clock spring roller is badly worn and will not turn. I suspect it never did. I have a Shee Mar TSW, white w/ yellow cancel cam. I never liked the feel of it. It always felt like I was going to break it when signalling for a turn.

I ordered a new turn signal switch from Megaparts today, after hours of research on the best one. I also bought a new upper steering column shaft bearing from Ehrenberg since I never replaced it when I rebuilt the column. There's a slight amount of end play but no noise or wobble. But you can see the shaft move when you push on it with your fingers.

Anybody want to loan me the upper bearing removal/installation tool?

You can see where the clock spring made contact with each of the copper rings (the big one is for the Grant wheel). The spring is about 1 inch from the center of the shaft. So, I don't know what those other marks are on the rings.

 

[khryslerkid]

If it's similar to mine and I think it is, you loosen the two nuts to release the upper part from the column (tube). Remove the c clip first. You push the bearing out from the back once you have the upper piece removed. You'll probably have to get enough slack in the wireing to do this. You said you're replacing the switch so you'll have the wires removed. Don't take the nuts completely off of the square headed bolts. Hope you follow what I'm saying.

The bearing should have a rubber sleeve around it. You can push it out by hand.

 

[Mike67]

I agree with kid, horns work by making ground...My guess is you have a skinned ground wire in the coulumn. I've had it happen on others

 

[themechanic]

If it's similar to mine and I think it is, you loosen the two nuts to release the upper part from the column (tube). Remove the c clip first. You push the bearing out from the back once you have the upper piece removed. You'll probably have to get enough slack in the wireing to do this. You said you're replacing the switch so you'll have the wires removed. Don't take the nuts completely off of the square headed bolts. Hope you follow what I'm saying.View attachment 530735
View attachment 530736 View attachment 530737

The bearing should have a rubber sleeve around it. You can push it out by hand.
View attachment 530738

I've had it apart once before. So, it should be a breeze the second time. Why does the bearing fall out in your case and need to be pressed out in

 

[themechanic]

others?

 

[khryslerkid]

I've had it apart once before. So, it should be a breeze the second time. Why does the bearing fall out in your case and need to be pressed out in

I'm not sure what you're asking. The bearing is surrounded by rubber. It might stick to the case and require a little persuasion. Maybe the same size long socket and a hammer. Installing it, with a clean bore and a thin film of lube, it will press in by hand.

 

[themechanic]

http://www.megapartsusa.com/proddetail.asp?prod=199-DR061

 

[barryv]

flat copper ring is supposed to be insulated.original ones crumble over time.that's what happened to my 1970 road runner.horn kept beeping when I turned wheel while driving.bought 2 flat rubber washers from someone on here that rebuilds steering wheels and have no issues

 

[themechanic]

flat copper ring is supposed to be insulated.original ones crumble over time.that's what happened to my 1970 road runner.horn kept beeping when I turned wheel while driving.bought 2 flat rubber washers from someone on here that rebuilds steering wheels and have no issues

This happened on 3 different new steering wheels. Thanks anyway.

 

[themechanic]

I replaced the cancel cam finger and the bad turn signal switch and that fixed the problem. The switch actually worked but the wheel at the top of the clock spring didn't turn and was worn down badly. The spring leaned inwards towards the center making contact with the cancel cam finger causing the horn to honk every 360 degrees of rotation.

So, that problem is solved. However, I still have the terrible gap between the horn pad and the wheel making the turn signal switch very visible as well as other parts under the horn pad. I already checked all the part numbers and I have all correct parts. I don't know what the problem is but I can fix it with an aftermarket steering wheel.

There is already another thread about this if you care to chime in on the gap.

http://www.forbbodiesonly.com/mopar...ering-wheel-gap-normal.132581/#post-910818172

 

[BeepBeepRR]

Just got this same problem in the roadrunner wheel. I found that there are 2 Im guessing insulators that separate the round copper from the steering wheel and one separates the round spring from the steering wheel. Both were crumbling into dust and now the horn honks when turning. Is there a source for the 2 insulators? I may try just some plastic but thats why its honking. I do not have any pictures. But if you take that round spring off there should be plastic under it. And if you pull the round copper piece off there should be an insulator under it as well. There was a pile of powder and chinks of old *** plastic inside the column. Check those out and see if they are there.

 

[BeepBeepRR]

Just found one in great shape.. Im posting pictures of what it should look like. If you don't have the light greenish plastic then your horn will beep at inopportune times. Will pull the old one for comparison.