# Solved: Horn Stopped Working on 2007 Dodge Caliber



## cwwozniak

I used the horn for a about a 3 second blast a few days ago and it stopped working right after that. The horn does not work when the switch is pressed on the steering wheel or when I use the remote to lock the car. Locking with the remote usually gives short honk on the horn. This makes me think the problem is somewhere other than the steering wheel switch, which got mashed down pretty good when someone tried to merge into my lane while they were still next to me.

There does not seem to be a specific horn related fuse in the top of the electronics module to check.

I wanted to see if power was getting to the horn but I can't even find it in the cramped engine compartment. I would rather not start removing random shrouds and covers looking for it.

Any ideas as to what I should be checking to fix the problem?


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## leroys1000

Apparently,they put the horn on that car on the driver side
behind the front bumper.
Check for corroded connections and power there.
Might want to use an ohmmeter to check continuity
on the fuses.
Looks like quite a few people have been having problems
with the horn on those cars.


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## cwwozniak

Thank you very much for the information. I found an opening under the front bumper on that side. I was able to reach in and felt something mounted that would be about the right size. Might have time much later today to get the front end on some jack stands and get my head under the bumper and see what's what.

I know what you mean about it being a common problem on that car. I read one thread on an automotive site and somebody suggested that the electronic module may have accidentally thought the horn had failed with an overload condition and locked it out. The suggested fix was to disconnect the horn and battery for a few minutes to reset the module, reconnect just the battery and then see if power gets applied to the wire that is disconnected from the horn. They did not mention the location of the horn.

EDIT: Another DIY car repair site mentioned that fuse #14 controlled the horn circuit. It checked out good.


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## cwwozniak

I am not getting any voltage on the wire that goes to the horn. It is disconnected from the horn and I will try resetting the electronics module by disconnecting the battery for a few minutes.

Any ideas what to check next if that does not help?


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## leroys1000

Not exactly sure with that model,but some cars have an inline
relay that activates the horn.
Could be mounted on the firewall,front of the car or under the dash.
At this point,you might want to see if you can locate a service manual.
I usually recommend hanes manuals as the ususally still include the
wiring diagrams.


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## cwwozniak

I found another site when I first posted here that mentioned some kind of "High Side Drivers" being used for operating the horn. The thread on that site also said something about the electronics module locking out the drivers if it thinks that the horn itself is shorted or overloading the drivers. The solution in the thread was to disconnect the horn and then disconnect and reconnect the battery to reset the module. Then use a meter or light bulb connected to the horn wire to see if power gets applied to it when pressing the horn button on the steering wheel. The horn wire is disconnected but I have not had time to check any further.


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## cwwozniak

The problem was in the connector on the wire that connects to the horn. The connector was being held by the crimp around the wire insulation but no electrical connection. A small tug on the wire pulled it out of the connector. Replaced the connector with a standard 1/4" female fast-on terminal and the horn works.


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## leroys1000

That must have been a pain to track down.
Glad you got it going.


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## Koot

Now you can toot your own horn!


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