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MG Midget and Sprite Technical - frogeye horn not working

Hi,
I'm a bit confused. The horn on my IOW frog stopped working and I noticed the horn push button was a bit loose in the steering wheel so thought it was probably due to a poor connection between the horn push and inner steering wheel/steering column.
I've put 12v across the horn itself and it worked fine.
I've placed a test lead with light from the pencil thing to the steering column (bypassing the horn push), pushed the pencil thing in and the test light illuminates, but shouldn't that make the horn sound? Because it didn't.
Please help because its MOT time next month!
aj robinson

Just to clarify, I used a spare car battery to put 12v across the horn
aj robinson

aj,
there's different wiring on horns for different models.
Often it's the wire connections that cause problems, the bullet connectors and the spades on the horns.

You could have a look at the horns on the mgb-stuff web site for info but I think test lights and multimeters might get enough electric but not the horns so you're just testing that the electric gets through not that it's enough to work the horns (unless you know how to fully work a multimeter, I don't).

It's a good idea to regularly test things the horns, wipers, heater motor, etc., say every couple of weeks.

That reminds me one of my horns is intermittent I'll sort it next time the rad grille is off as it's usually the spade connectors or bullets behind the grille.
Nigel Atkins

Thanks Nigel,
that makes sense. I'm not great with electrickery but have a multimeter and can do the basics.
Think I will start from scratch and find the actual voltages involved at various points.
aj robinson

The pencil "thing" earths the horn to the body I.e. the horn has a permanent battery supply. The test light will only come on when the pencil thing is not earthing so it seems as if there is an earthing problem. Try connecting the wire to the pencil connector to the body directly and the horn should work. If it does you need to check for good contact with the slip ring. Also check that the slip ring is connecting to the body (if you have a multimeter).

Bill

W Bretherton

Thanks Bill,
hopefully I will find time today or tomorrow and report back
aj robinson

This thread was discussed between 04/04/2017 and 05/04/2017

MG Midget and Sprite Technical index

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