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Diagnose my Car Problem...
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2014 GMC Yukon Denali

A couple of month ago, the horn started honking randomly every once in a while when shifting into reverse as well as shifting from reverse into drive. Pretty sporadic at first but happened more and more as the weeks went on. Does not happen every time however. When it does happen, it is always within a minute or two of starting the car. Once operational for longer than that there never appears to be an issue.

Three times now in the past couple of weeks, the car has just started horn blowing when locked with nobody inside. The first time it started about 3-5 minutes after we got out and locked it and were already in the restaurant. Happened twice last night. Once right after getting out and once at 3am in the garage after sitting in there since 8pm. When this happens it is a constant honk like someone is in there just holding down the horn. The only way I can stop it is by opening the car and hitting the horn.

Any thoughts on what the hell is going on?
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Re: Diagnose my Car Problem... [Dixie Normus] [ In reply to ]
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The first scenario is kinda inexplicable. Nothing about the horn should be aware of what gear the car is in.

The second scenario sounds like a problem with the horn switch. If the horn is sounding and the fix is to push the horn button, then the problem is probably the horn switch.

Stating the obvious, intermittent problems are a bastard. If the mechanic can't get the problem to occur, then he has no problem to fix. So one ends up fixing "possible causes" until eventually the symptom goes away. Sometimes the symptom goes away by itself. Sometimes replacing A jostles real cause B and the symptoms go away, leading everyone to conclude incorrectly that the cause was A.

Books @ Amazon
"If only he had used his genius for niceness, instead of Evil." M. Smart
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Re: Diagnose my Car Problem... [Dixie Normus] [ In reply to ]
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A short. Youre welcome!



Funny related story, in high school my buddys car would honk the horn every time he turned left nd it would stay honking until it straightened out.

A few years ago i was driving a buddys car while it was snowing. I was aproching a stoplight with obe car ahead of me. Just as the light changed and he stopped, the horn started sounding. The entire red light, this poor guy thought i was an asshole laying on the horn. All i could do was laugh at the situation. As sson as the light changed, i was able to pull over. The only way to fix it was to crawl under the car and yank the horn wires. Still makes me laugh!

who's smarter than you're? i'm!
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Re: Diagnose my Car Problem... [RangerGress] [ In reply to ]
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Yeah, that is what the dealership is telling me too...pisses me off that they can't diagnose unless they can recreate the problem!

Would it change your thoughts at all on the gearing part if I told you that the shifter is on the steering column?
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Re: Diagnose my Car Problem... [Dixie Normus] [ In reply to ]
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Its probably a faulty horn switch.

who's smarter than you're? i'm!
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Re: Diagnose my Car Problem... [veganerd] [ In reply to ]
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Exactly the kind of problem that I am having! I am in a crowded parking lot and just fucking honking away like I am mad at somebody. I'm bound to get shot in today's current road rage environment if I can't get it figured out!

Any idea how to find the short if that is the issue?
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Re: Diagnose my Car Problem... [Dixie Normus] [ In reply to ]
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Dixie Normus wrote:
Yeah, that is what the dealership is telling me too...pisses me off that they can't diagnose unless they can recreate the problem!

Would it change your thoughts at all on the gearing part if I told you that the shifter is on the steering column?

Yes, that helps the bad horn switch theory. Also could be the wiring to the horn switch. It's easy to imagine a scenario where the movement of the gear selector could nudge a wiring harness inside the steering column. The wiring to the horn switch could be in that harness. So the movement of the wiring could impact the horn switch, or the problem could be in that piece of wiring harness itself.

There's several wiring harnesses going from dash to steering column. Each will have it's own connector under the dash. My suggestion would be to replace both the horn switch(es) and also the steering column wiring harness that contains the horn switch wiring. That way the steering column only has to be taken apart once. If that doesn't fix it, at least you've replaced all likely culprits and there will be no ambiguity re. the need to think out of the box and go after low probability solutions.

Dumb question. When your car is off, does your horn still work? I would not have thought the horn would work if the car is off, but your description indicates that this is happening with the car off. And that creates a different line of causation. The wire going to the horn button should not be hot when the car is off. However, the horn relay might well be hot 24/7 in order to sound if the car's alarm is triggered. The horn switch triggers the horn relay. So even tho the relay would be hot, it wouldn't trigger the horn unless the horn switch told it to. The bottom line is....if the horn is going on when the car is off, either the horn switch wire is hot and it shouldn't be, or the problem is that the alarm system is somehow triggering the horn.

Books @ Amazon
"If only he had used his genius for niceness, instead of Evil." M. Smart
Last edited by: RangerGress: Aug 22, 17 8:28
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Re: Diagnose my Car Problem... [Dixie Normus] [ In reply to ]
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Is the horn part of the alarm system? If yes....

I'd say you have a bad sensor in the alarm system. That will set the horn going for seemingly no reason.
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Re: Diagnose my Car Problem... [RangerGress] [ In reply to ]
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RangerGress wrote:

Dumb question. When your car is off, does your horn still work? I would not have thought the horn would work if the car is off, but your description indicates that this is happening with the car off. And that creates a different line of causation. The wire going to the horn button should not be hot when the car is off. However, the horn relay might well be hot 24/7 in order to sound if the car's alarm is triggered. The horn switch triggers the horn relay. So even tho the relay would be hot, it wouldn't trigger the horn unless the horn switch told it to. The bottom line is....if the horn is going on when the car is off, either the horn switch wire is hot and it shouldn't be, or the problem is that the alarm system is somehow triggering the horn.

Never thought to check that. I think it still works when car is off...I'll check when I leave the office. Oil change guy said he thought changing the clock spring would fix it, but he didn't make me feel assured enough that I was willing to let him give it a shot.
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Re: Diagnose my Car Problem... [Dixie Normus] [ In reply to ]
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I'd at least pull the fuse or disconnect the wires to the horn. The horn itself should be close to the front grill so you should just be able to reach in and pull the wires off. At least then you can fix it on your own time and not worry about the random events happening.
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Re: Diagnose my Car Problem... [svennn] [ In reply to ]
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svennn wrote:
Is the horn part of the alarm system? If yes....

I'd say you have a bad sensor in the alarm system. That will set the horn going for seemingly no reason.

Agree, this could be the problem ...ask a GM truck forum.
I would unplug the horn at the horn ...3 minute fix...and forget about it, or wire in your own horn button. easy

sometimes
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Re: Diagnose my Car Problem... [mustangchef] [ In reply to ]
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mustangchef wrote:
svennn wrote:
Is the horn part of the alarm system? If yes....

I'd say you have a bad sensor in the alarm system. That will set the horn going for seemingly no reason.


Agree, this could be the problem ...ask a GM truck forum.
I would unplug the horn at the horn ...3 minute fix...and forget about it, or wire in your own horn button. easy

BMW uses a separate siren from the horn but I had the exact same issue. In the middle of the night it would go off for no reason. I unplugged the hood sensor to the alarm and it fixed it. It's a common issue in my generation car.
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Re: Diagnose my Car Problem... [Dixie Normus] [ In reply to ]
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is it under warranty? If so it shouldn't be an issue to get fixed. They should have the electrical diagram for the horn. They just need to follow the wire to the horn and to the power supply for it. If there is no damage to the wire it's going to be the switch that triggers the horn. Fixing that first will be way easier though then wire tracking.

We're not taking about a complex system here. Either the horn is on or off. If it's on somehow it's getting power when it shouldn't be.

I had an airbag light come on on my Jeep. It ended up being during install they tightened one of the zip ties on a wire assembly in the door too tight and the wire got cut. It's probabaly something that stupid. It could just take awhile for them to back track the wire.
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Re: Diagnose my Car Problem... [Dixie Normus] [ In reply to ]
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If you have the transmission gear shift on the steering column, and your horn blaring is more common when in various gearing, then you do have a faulty horn activation ring in the steering column. It is especially true if you have a tilt-function for the steering wheel. Basically, there is a thin metal washer contact in the column that is getting activated.

As previous posters have mentioned, for now disconnect the horn wiring at the horn. "Pull the plug" or snip the wiring; it should be under the front fender or grill area in the engine compartment.

If you had recent work on the steering column, like having a key switch replaced or the airbag replaced, this can happen. The steering wheel gets pulled off, which can damage the horn switch or contact area. It could also be a screw loosening up in the electronics ring underneath the steering wheel, which is only accessible after you pull the wheel. Not a tidy project.
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Re: Diagnose my Car Problem... [Dixie Normus] [ In reply to ]
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The valve that holds the air in the horn reservoir is likely leaking and getting worse. Have the mechanic start there.






Take a short break from ST and read my blog:
http://tri-banter.blogspot.com/
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Re: Diagnose my Car Problem... [Dixie Normus] [ In reply to ]
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You have a honky car. Clearly you're a racist.

******************************
If I don't, who will? -Me
It's like being bipolar in opinion is a requirement around here. -TripleThreat
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Re: Diagnose my Car Problem... [Dixie Normus] [ In reply to ]
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It's probably the dingle arm.


https://youtu.be/W9LXG7rPQfE

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Re: Diagnose my Car Problem... [getcereal] [ In reply to ]
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This thread is why the LR is great.
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Re: Diagnose my Car Problem... [windywave] [ In reply to ]
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windywave wrote:
This thread is why the LR is great.

You mean a good solid mix of genuine good advice plus humor to go with it? I agree.
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Re: Diagnose my Car Problem... [Dixie Normus] [ In reply to ]
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Dixie Normus wrote:
2014 GMC Yukon Denali

Consider your problem diagnosed.

Long Chile was a silly place.
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Re: Diagnose my Car Problem... [Tri-Banter] [ In reply to ]
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You're nuts, horns don't use air anymore. It's all ball bearings these days.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uTI_S8xETSI
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