Horn doesn't work when wheel is straight

Maintenance/Repairs
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1

I have a 1999 Honda Accord - the type where the entire front of the steering wheel is the horn. When the steering wheel is pointed straight, the horn doesn’t work - ever, no matter how hard I press or hit it or where on the wheel I press.



As soon as I turn the wheel, even a little bit, the horn works perfectly.



Does anybody have any ideas? The dealership wanted to charge me hundreds of dollars to even look at it and diagnose the problem.



Thanks!

2

I would suspect an intermittant cable reel (AKA clock spring) which transfers the horn signel up the the steering wheel then to the push pad. It could also be the ground of the steering wheel but a failure there would be quite odd.

One test you might try is to attempt to operate the cruise control when the horn does not work. If the cruise control functions do not operate while the horn is nonfunctional that is another sign that the cable reel is intermittantly open.

I hope this is helpful.