Ever consider relocating horn to improve cooling?

[cormy]

Took the grill off and noticed the horn(s) right in front of the radiator. Not worth the trouble?

 

pic doesn't seem to open..

Edited September 20, 2013 by cormy

[awakeinAZ]

Im thinking no!

 

If you have an SCT, when you go to load a tune enter the optional parameters and set the low speed cooling fan to come on @ 195. That will help more then moving the horns IMHO.

[msb64]

I thought the horn relocation was worth a try myself, and made the change last year.

With the size of the horn cluster plus the turbulence to the air flow it would create, it has to make a difference.

Also, it looks a lot cleaner up front with the horns out of sight.

The silver fins really contrast with the black horn assembly and makes it stick out too much.

With the horns moved and the grill off, I took my time and carefully straightened out any clogged or bent fins, to promote more efficient cooling.

You also have to be careful removing the grill, and make sure not to damage the plastic tabs or facia.

I took my time and worked all the tabs loose, and had no trouble at all.

I modified the oem bracket to enable mounting the horns in the new location, and chose a location so that the wiring did not need to be modified, just rerouted to where it needed to go.

I think the install looks pretty clean, and the horns In their new location are still plenty loud.

The horns are aimed downwards and slightly forward, to reflect off of the road and keep dirt and moisture from building up in them.

 

Altering the cooling fan turn on temperature is a nice touch too, will check that out as well.

[cormy]

It does look cleaner..but your whole car looks clean!

 

Hard to tell from the pic..where did you move the horns to?

 

Maybe there should be a "horn delete" from the factory.. B)

[msb64]

I do my best to keep it clean, and only bring it out on sunny spring/summer/fall days

I also clean and hand wash the whole undercarriage, wheel wells, suspension etc. over our long winters.

I have plenty of time for that, I usually put it away mid October and don't bring it back out until mid/late April.

It usually takes until at least then for the city to clean the sand and gravel off of the streets around here.

 

The modified horn bracket is bolted to the passenger side front bumper mount, through a factory hole you will find in the lower right corner.

The white round thing just to the right of the lower horn, is the back of the passenger side fog light.

To make the install easier and to take that picture, I temporarily removed the windshield washer fluid bottle.

I also ran the car up onto front ramps, either that or a hoist is a necessity to work under there.

 

Not sure why they chose to put the horns where they did, most of my other vehicles have them located behind the rad support and totally out of sight.

 

I first really noticed them in pictures, when the camera flash really lights up that whole area, except for the dark horns.

Cleaning up the looks and enhancing air flow just seemed to make it worth the effort for me.

[Bfox]

As somebody who was doing everything I could to help with cooling, I moved the horns to a spot behind the passenger headlight when I had replaced my radiator. I ditched the original bracket because it was too big and simply used single steel strip with a hole in it that I had laying around. Very simple procedure and a much cleaner look up front.

[super hiss]

i like the way you guys think... yet another fix that im having to do from ford! you dont see that shit on the 2013s

[OsirisGT500]

I mounted mine to the top of the splitter on the passenger side.

[2010KonaBlueGT]

Took the grill off and noticed the horn(s) right in front of the radiator. Not worth the trouble?

 

pic doesn't seem to open..

 

Hmm. My 2010 has the two horns located on the OUTSIDE of the left side frame rail, ahead of the inner fender well. It looks like it uses the same exact horns and "V" shaped mounting bracket but uses a hole on the side of the frame rail.

 

So Ford Mo. Co. must have felt the same as you guys....

 

 

Phill

[cormy]

I have it out and repainted the bracket, will be mounting it probably in the same place Bfox put his, behind the pass headlight. Fits ok just drill a hole into the bracket and in the brace. Get a self tapper and that's it.

[TurboGT]

I think I'll give this mod a try before plunking down $750 on a bigger radiator. An extra 10 square inches of unobstructed airflow across the cooling fins can't hurt.

[msb64]

While you are in there, take your time and clean out any bugs or debris that may be plugging the radiator and ac coil.

I used small long needle nose pliers, a small screwdriver and some dental picks to clean out and then straighten any bent fins.

Just be extra careful because those fins are fairly delicate.

 

Wouldn't hurt to do the heat exchanger too, if you can get at it.

Edited October 8, 2013 by msb64

[2010KonaBlueGT]

While you are in there, take your time and clean out any bugs or debris that may be plugging the radiator and ac coil.

I used small long needle nose pliers, a small screwdriver and some dental picks to clean out and then straighten any bent fins.

Just be extra careful because those fins are fairly delicate.

 

Wouldn't hurt to do the heat exchanger too, if you can get at it.

 

Or you can use a radiator comb to do the job!

 

Yes, there is a tool made specifically for the job of combing the radiator fins. It straightens out any bent fins too.

 

You can probably find one at Harbor Freight. They don't look like a hair comb, more like a multi sided "circle" (pentagon?) with different count teeth on each side.

 

 

Phill

[2010KonaBlueGT]

Here ya go;

[ati]

Are you kidding me, I never knew such a tool existed. I've always very carefully used a small flat blade screwdriver or an ice pic.

I got to get me one of these.

Thanks for posting

[msb64]

I used to install residential AC "A" coils, so I was aware of them, just never really had a need for one before.

The multi head round ones are kind of large, and would probably not work that well in tight spaces.

I noticed Wagner does make individual combs though, and Allstar makes one with exchangeable combs.

http://www.amazon.com/Allstar-ALL10680-Radiator-Fin-Comb/dp/B006K8GKBO

These Supco combs might do the trick as well

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Handy-Ring-Fin-Comb-Set-For-Condenser-Evaporator-Coils-Supco-FCR6-New-/290968510830

[msb64]

Btw, thanks alot Phill.

Now I will need to pick up another tool box !

[03 DSG Snake]

I thought the horn relocation was worth a try myself, and made the change last year.

With the size of the horn cluster plus the turbulence to the air flow it would create, it has to make a difference.

Also, it looks a lot cleaner up front with the horns out of sight.

The silver fins really contrast with the black horn assembly and makes it stick out too much.

With the horns moved and the grill off, I took my time and carefully straightened out any clogged or bent fins, to promote more efficient cooling.

You also have to be careful removing the grill, and make sure not to damage the plastic tabs or facia.

I took my time and worked all the tabs loose, and had no trouble at all.

I modified the oem bracket to enable mounting the horns in the new location, and chose a location so that the wiring did not need to be modified, just rerouted to where it needed to go.

I think the install looks pretty clean, and the horns In their new location are still plenty loud.

The horns are aimed downwards and slightly forward, to reflect off of the road and keep dirt and moisture from building up in them.

 

Altering the cooling fan turn on temperature is a nice touch too, will check that out as well.

 

100 times cleaner looking, great idea!

 

Is there an easy way to pull the upper grille off with the bumper in place?

[msb64]

I did mine with the bumper in place myself, and it was fairly easy.

Once you take the plastic rad cover off, it gives you easy access to the back of the grill and its plastic retaining tabs.

You carefully release each tab one by one and work your way around until they are all released, and then you can remove the grill.

Keep in mind that as plastic ages, it can get brittle and especially if it has been exposed to a lot of sunlight/UV.

I did mine when it was fairly warm outside, so all the plastic pieces were nice and flexible.

The hardest part of the grill removal was keeping the tabs from popping back in as you work your way around the grill.

I did it by myself, but a second set of hands would have helped with that.

If you look at this picture, you can see the tab slots in the bumper cover, 7 across the bottom, and 2 up each side of the grill opening.

You can also see that there was some fin damage behind the horns, most likely by whoever installed the horns at the factory.

Pick a warm day, take your time and don't force anything and you should be fine.

[cormy]

Yes, much easier than the lower. Just make sure your fingers are ready for the workout!! For some reason the grill does not want to come out..

[TurboGT]

With just the upper grill removed - did you have enough room to work at relocating the horns elsewhere behind the bumper without removing the fascia? I don't mind removing the whole thing, just wondering.

I did mine with the bumper in place myself, and it was fairly easy.

Once you take the plastic rad cover off, it gives you easy access to the back of the grill and its plastic retaining tabs.

You carefully release each tab one by one and work your way around until they are all released, and then you can remove the grill.

Keep in mind that as plastic ages, it can get brittle and especially if it has been exposed to a lot of sunlight/UV.

I did mine when it was fairly warm outside, so all the plastic pieces were nice and flexible.

The hardest part of the grill removal was keeping the tabs from popping back in as you work your way around the grill.

I did it by myself, but a second set of hands would have helped with that.

If you look at this picture, you can see the tab slots in the bumper cover, 7 across the bottom, and 2 up each side of the grill opening.

You can also see that there was some fin damage behind the horns, most likely by whoever installed the horns at the factory.

Pick a warm day, take your time and don't force anything and you should be fine.

[msb64]

I only removed the grill myself, to be able to get the whole horn assembly out in one piece.

It might even be possible to take the horns off the bracket and sneak them out the top, but I figured the grill would be easy to remove.

I also wanted to straighten out the bent fins, which is much easier to do with the grill removed.

I unplugged the horn harness, removed the plastic harness retainers and then rerouted the wiring to the new location.

I modified the oem bracket to fit at the new location, cut a bit off of it, bent the mounting arm as needed, and painted it before installing.

If you didn't know it was modified, you would figure it came from the factory that way, just the way I like it.

Once you dig into it, it is pretty easy to figure out.

[cormy]

Finally got around to replacing the horn behind the radiator.

[Triumph]

Resurrecting this thread since it gave me the idea to move my horns while installing my new C&R radiator & heat exchanger. Instead of moving the horns to the passenger side, I put mine on the driver's side. It made more sense since there is a lot more room available. With the fender plastic back in place they are neatly hidden. I did have to extend the wiring harness to reach the driver's side.

Edited June 8, 2014 by Triumph

[msb64]

That is a good place for them too, looks to be a fair bit easier to get at.

I typically prefer not to cut into any wiring if I can help it, but if it is done correctly then it is ok.

I strongly recommend soldering all wire joints and using heat shrink to protect the joints.

Wrap the wiring with electrical tape, and protect the run with the appropriate size black split plastic conduit.

That way it will look just like factory, and you won't have to worry about moisture/corrosion breaking down the joints years down the road.

Another consideration is how the horns are aimed, I aimed mine downward so that moisture would not build up in them and possibly cause them to stop working.

If you look at the way the factory installed them, they have them pointing down as well, pretty sure they did that on purpose.

The horn mod is a subtle one to most casual observers, but really sticks out to those who have similar cars.

[cormy]

May not what to bury them too deep into the car...might not be able to hear them to well....

[Hec332]

Next weekends project, thanks guys