Change the Horn on my new 2008 M3 Hatchback... Pain
#1
Change the Horn on my new 2008 M3 Hatchback... Pain
Hey guys,
I am posting this to help the next guy that wants to change his horn. I don't need to tell you that the M3 Horn is weak...like my son's bicycle!
In any case, I bought a FIAMM HWY blaster for around $30 and it sounds so much better, in fact,it now sounds like Titan that I traded in for the Mazda3 !
The thing is that I had to buy a cheap Jack and 2 small supports, one for each front wheel side, because you have to get under the car. Don't even bother to try to find the horn looking from the hood. You have to get under it.
Looking for it, I took off the big plastic cover first, but I did not need to. I should only have taken the one immediately under the drivers headlight. The screws to loosen it go around the drives front wheel also. Get a flash light too! It is a tight spot.
It is a one wire installed horn. I thought I would leave the original horn there and just add the FIAMM to it, but when I saw how short the little wire was and how much trouble would be to try to split it, I gave it... Took that piece of junk out, and just install the FIAMM in its place, that by the way, looks exactly like the one that come with the car.
Total cost:
1 jack( i will be using it for tire rotations now) $18, 2 support stands $15
and the horn $30 (around that, can't remember exactly)
I hope this helps!
David
I am posting this to help the next guy that wants to change his horn. I don't need to tell you that the M3 Horn is weak...like my son's bicycle!
In any case, I bought a FIAMM HWY blaster for around $30 and it sounds so much better, in fact,it now sounds like Titan that I traded in for the Mazda3 !
The thing is that I had to buy a cheap Jack and 2 small supports, one for each front wheel side, because you have to get under the car. Don't even bother to try to find the horn looking from the hood. You have to get under it.
Looking for it, I took off the big plastic cover first, but I did not need to. I should only have taken the one immediately under the drivers headlight. The screws to loosen it go around the drives front wheel also. Get a flash light too! It is a tight spot.
It is a one wire installed horn. I thought I would leave the original horn there and just add the FIAMM to it, but when I saw how short the little wire was and how much trouble would be to try to split it, I gave it... Took that piece of junk out, and just install the FIAMM in its place, that by the way, looks exactly like the one that come with the car.
Total cost:
1 jack( i will be using it for tire rotations now) $18, 2 support stands $15
and the horn $30 (around that, can't remember exactly)
I hope this helps!
David
#2
RE: Change the Horn on my new 2008 M3 Hatchback... Pain
Yeah I installed both High and Low Fiamm Freeway blasters about 2 and a half years ago and couldn't be happier. (well I could be but we'll not go into that. ) I installed mine without jacking up the front, but it was a super pain in the ***... I managed to put my front wheels right on the edge of my carport where the driveway went down and could just barely get my head and one hand underneath it to look.
Incidentally why did you only replace it with one horn? Did you put in the low tone or the high tone? If you only put in the low tone then I suggest you go back and add the stock high tone... the dissonance the two make will grab much more attention than with either one alone. Like I said I replaced the stock high tone with both FB's (some people have only added the low tone FB to the stock) and made a small splitter for the power wire out of about 10" of wire and a few spade connectors. I can give you some pictures if you're interested in doing both together.
Incidentally why did you only replace it with one horn? Did you put in the low tone or the high tone? If you only put in the low tone then I suggest you go back and add the stock high tone... the dissonance the two make will grab much more attention than with either one alone. Like I said I replaced the stock high tone with both FB's (some people have only added the low tone FB to the stock) and made a small splitter for the power wire out of about 10" of wire and a few spade connectors. I can give you some pictures if you're interested in doing both together.
#3
RE: Change the Horn on my new 2008 M3 Hatchback... Pain
[sm=repost.gif] I saw this exact same post on Mazdas247.
Yup! Here's mine, but I added the low toneHwy Blaster to the factory hi-tone horn.... which is also a FIAMM (Italy) made horn. They do sound more American than Japanese though. Mine was only $17 ea... but I only bought one new one.
A simple spade adapter lug and jumper wire was all it took.
It's a lot easier w/the bumper cover removed but I didn't do it that way either. It was already done by the time this pic was taken.
Yup! Here's mine, but I added the low toneHwy Blaster to the factory hi-tone horn.... which is also a FIAMM (Italy) made horn. They do sound more American than Japanese though. Mine was only $17 ea... but I only bought one new one.
A simple spade adapter lug and jumper wire was all it took.
It's a lot easier w/the bumper cover removed but I didn't do it that way either. It was already done by the time this pic was taken.
#4
RE: Change the Horn on my new 2008 M3 Hatchback... Pain
Same thing with me virgin, 'cept I didn't take any pictures until after I was done, I didn't take the bumper off, and my wife was out of town with the good camera so they're crappy palm pilot pictures.
#5
RE: Change the Horn on my new 2008 M3 Hatchback... Pain
ORIGINAL: virgin1
[sm=repost.gif] ??I saw this exact same post on Mazdas247.??
Yup!?? Here's mine, but I added the low tone??Hwy Blaster to the factory hi-tone horn.... which is also a FIAMM (Italy) made horn.?? They do sound more American than Japanese though.?? Mine was only $17 ea... but I only bought one new one.
A simple spade adapter lug and jumper wire was all it took.
It's a lot easier w/the bumper cover removed but I didn't do it that way either.?? It was already done by the time this pic was taken.
[sm=repost.gif] ??I saw this exact same post on Mazdas247.??
Yup!?? Here's mine, but I added the low tone??Hwy Blaster to the factory hi-tone horn.... which is also a FIAMM (Italy) made horn.?? They do sound more American than Japanese though.?? Mine was only $17 ea... but I only bought one new one.
A simple spade adapter lug and jumper wire was all it took.
It's a lot easier w/the bumper cover removed but I didn't do it that way either.?? It was already done by the time this pic was taken.
________
Laguna Bay II Condominium Prathumnak
Last edited by wineye; 09-15-2011 at 06:30 PM.
#10
RE: Change the Horn on my new 2008 M3 Hatchback... Pain
put that little thing in from radio shack i forgot what its called but you can tell people to get the *** out your way or say w/e in that matter to people outside of your car.....i never uses the horn neither do i know how it sounds...i never even pressed the horn ever since i bought the car and everything i want to i say *** it or i forget.