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Buell Forum » Knowledge Vault (tech, parts, apparel, & accessories topics) » Troubleshooting (Poor Starting/Running/Handling/Ride Issues) » Archive through March 21, 2016 » Horn trouble for new owner « Previous Next »

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Gingahippy
Posted on Thursday, August 13, 2015 - 04:17 am:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only) Ban Poster IP (Custodian/Admin only)

Hi. I recently upgraded from a Honda Shadow to a Buell Uly, so much fun! I finally got the do everything bike I have always wanted.

Anyway, the horn wouldn't work, I bought a new Wolo low tone and when fitting it it also didn't work if I used both the old connectors, but it does work if I attach the neutral wire to ground/chassis. The seller told me the old horn was working last he saw but I can't get a voltage reading if I test both the connectors, only if I test live and ground.

Why would this happen when the bike was built with both connectors? I can't manage to trace the dead wire back to source and I'm not confident enough to start pulling the bike apart yet.

I'm happy with it working as is but just wanted to check that I have not shorted out some other circuit by doing this. The Wolo horn instructions said to mount it this way if there was only one supply wire, but to mount it the old way if there were two wires. I am concerned that what was working correctly now isn't and I am just covering up a problem.

Thanks guys (and gals?)
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Daddio
Posted on Wednesday, August 19, 2015 - 09:00 am:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only) Ban Poster IP (Custodian/Admin only)

Chances are good that you have a broken ground in your wiring harness; there are (I think) 3 ground wires that are spliced together in the harness, and the splices are a known problem. Unwrapping the harness to expose the ground wires, and feeling along them to find if the wire is broken inside the insulation would be the ideal way to effect a repair. Does everything else that connects behind the flyscreen work?
Also, you may consider running your Wolo through a relay, using the original 'hot' wire as the trigger wire, depending on the amp draw of the new horn.
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Gingahippy
Posted on Friday, August 21, 2015 - 09:39 am:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only) Ban Poster IP (Custodian/Admin only)

Everything else seems to work just fine.

I couldn't even trace the wires back into the body of the bike. It looks like I'd need to take off the air inlet and filter and then unwrap the harness to trace where the wire goes to, I was assuming the existing wire came through a relay already. Isn't that how the Buell is wired?
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Daddio
Posted on Saturday, August 22, 2015 - 09:41 am:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only) Ban Poster IP (Custodian/Admin only)

There should be a ground wire attached to the steering neck, this is just one of several grounding points on these Ulys. If everything else electrical works on your bike, you likely have a broken ground wire (or splice) that goes to your horn, that begins and ends behind the flyscreen. You could just wire up a new ground bypassing the stock horn ground.
Make sure that the new horn doesn't create additional stress on the wiring harness behind the flyscreen, it seems as if when making the wiring harnesses, they figured the wires to the exact minimum length.
And, no, the stock horn is low draw, it isn't switched through a separate relay.
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