Need some help troubleshooting a horn issue - 2012 Precedent.

[aft_cart]

This forum has been super helpful in the past, so I'm hoping I can find someone who can help me figure out how to troubleshoot an issue that's cropped up on our cart.

Our cart had a Madjax light kit already on it when we first purchased it (Kit 02-031, I think. URL: https://www.nivelparts.com/support/m...ent_Manual.pdf)

Last year, with the advice from this board, I purchased the upgrade kit to add the turn signals, horn, brake lights, etc in order to get the cart into compliance with local regs. That kit was the Madjax kit 02-006 (URL: https://www.nivelparts.com/support/m...ive_Manual.pdf)

Recently, we had an issue with the horn pop up. We've never really used it, but it doesnt seem to work anymore. My wife mentioned that you have to hit the button multiple times to get it to sound. I tried to test it a little while ago and couldnt get it to sound at all. What I did hear was a clicking sound coming from the horn area under the cart whenever I pressed the horn button. I also noticed that the lights on front and rear of the cart would blink off whenever the horn button was depressed. I don't know if that is normal behavior and never checked to see if it did that when it was first installed. Also, I noticed that the front driver turn signal is much dimmer than the rest of the lights on the cart. I noticed that with both the use of the turn signal, or when turning on the blinking hazard lights. I'm not sure if it's related, but thought there was a chance it could be related to an electrical issue.

As I said, I hadn't noticed any issues when we installed it, so the listed symptoms could all be related to the same issue that cropped up. Or maybe the horn just went bad and the rest of that is unrelated?

The only change to the cart was a recent battery replacement due to the batteries no longer holding a charge. We had the local dealer replace the batteries with Trojan T-875 (I think) about 3 weeks ago.

Some other info: the cart is a 48V cart with those new batteries. I installed a 30A voltage reducer (The OEM style one) with the ignition cut-off and wired that into a fuse box and ground bar. The light kit is connected to the fuse box. I tested the connections and its getting about 12.5V when the key is in the on position.

So, any thoughts on how I could narrow down the issue? Is it just a bad horn? And, if so, would it cause the lights to blink off when the horn button is depressed?

Any advice on where to start would be appreciated!

[NoleFan4Ever]

Sounds like the horn switch has failed or shorted. Could be the horn, but it is a short causing it regardless.

Remove the wires from the horn button and try to actuate the horn manually. If it works, replace the switch.

[WalterM6]

Also, Remove the wires from the horn button and try to actuate the horn manually. If the lights don't dim and everything else is back to normal replace the horn.

[yawood]

Those horns usually have an adjustment screw. If the screw is out of adjustment it will stop the horn from sounding. Just try screwing one way or the other while testing the horn.

[NoleFan4Ever]

And if after all of these test it still does not work, then roll it off the nearest cliff and start over with another...

[Dragracer_Art]

I deal with and maintain a fleet of electric forklifts. Horns are a constant issue.

Two main things that ALWAYS go bad... the horn contacts under the steering wheel (which you dont have) and the horn itself.
Sometimes the horn just craps out... but most of the time (as mentioned above) just tightening the adjustment screw a little more will wake it up and make it nice and loud again.

Easy to troubleshoot.
Put a meter on the two wires going to the horn and press the button. If you have voltage when the button is pressed... you have a bad horn.
If no voltage, check the horn button.

By the sounds of your description... the button works fine and the horn is probably the issue here. Look for the small adjustment screw and tweak on it. If there is no screw, replace the horn. (see pic for example)

The reason your lights go dim when the button is pressed is because sometimes a horn acts like a dead short when it goes bad.

[aft_cart]

I wanted to follow up on the advice from these posts. I took the horn off and used a multimeter to test the connections. They were showing 12.5V or so whenever the horn button was depressed, and the light did not blink off while the horn was disconnected and the multimeter was attached.

I messed with the screw on the horn and put it back on. Seems to function at the moment. The lights still dim slightly when the horn button is depressed for a split second. Would that still be an indicator of a problem? The horn sounds whenever the button is pressed now, unlike yesterday.

[yawood]

The horn does pull a bit of power so the lights might dim slightly, especially if they are not LED.

The horn probably has a bit more resistance than it should but it sounds like everything is working OK.

[NoleFan4Ever]

That is all normal.