[Mk23]

Looking to get a Hella Supertone horn and am looking for a decent DIY or at least someone who has wired one up to an E9x. Looking to increase the power to the horn to make it very loud, not the typical hook it up and your done. I live around Central Florida and I frequently have people merging into me and CONTINUE to merge into me even while I'm laying on my horn. I need something with a high decibel value. Friend of mine has one installed in his STI and said they are usually pretty popular with BMWs, unfortunately I have yet to find anyone talking about installing one.

Any info on what I will need to do to get this installed would be appreciated.

Link: http://www.griotsgarage.com/product/...hella+horns.do

Link: http://www.subimods.com/hella-supertone-horn-kit.html

FYI, the second link's video is wired with stock wiring, i.e. it doens't sound much louder, which is why I am wanting to increase the power to get it to a true 118dbs.


*edit*

This is what it should sound like when I'm done.

[Atorsesh]

I put 2 in my friends dad's 2011 Prius. It was a pretty simple install and just involved a relay and some 10 gauge wire from home depot.

[Mk23]

Originally Posted by liliceman13300

I put 2 in my friends dad's 2011 Prius. It was a pretty simple install and just involved a relay and some 10 gauge wire from home depot.

Yes but on BMWs is that 10x more complicated? Or is is just as straight forward?

My friend is the one who knows about these horns, and he is ready to help me out but he's unsure if BMWs are very different from STIs in terms of where things are, how easy is it to get to things and how to mount everything.

[Atorsesh]

Originally Posted by Mk335i

Yes but on BMWs is that 10x more complicated? Or is is just as straight forward?

My friend is the one who knows about these horns, and he is ready to help me out but he's unsure if BMWs are very different from STIs in terms of where things are, how easy is it to get to things and how to mount everything.

All horn systems are almost identical. BMW does have a few extra computers thrown in there for things but in the end its a simple 12 volt current that triggers the horn. Here's what you'll need to do to make it work on the BMW:
Cut the 2 wires that go directly to the horn, these are going to be used as triggers for a relay.
Get a Bosch relay (most Hella kits come with one) and wire the 85 and 86 terminals to the BMW horn wire. You will probably need a multi-meter to figure out what is + and what is -, but if you don't have one you have a 50% shot of getting it right and if you guess wrong it won't do any damage.
This is the tricky part: you need to run a new wire (something like 10 or 12 gauge) to go to the relay to power the horn. The Prius has the battery in the trunk, just like the BMW, but it has a 4 gauge wire run to the hood up to a terminal. I just tapped it off of that, you will need to find out where you can tap a + signal with sufficient amperes. Ground is easy..just bolt a wire somewhere on the body.
As for mounting the horns...good luck, that's the custom work you'll have to do. My advice is don't put it in front of the radiator or near very hot or moving parts. If you put it in front of the radiator and get in a low speed collision you can do extra damage to the radiator. The very hot or moving parts thing is self explanatory. Hardware stores sell cold rolled steel that works great for custom mounts.

Good luck!

[rbtamms]

I took my Hella Supertone out of my Acura TSX before trading it with my 328i Sedan. Now, I'm planning to install the horn but I don't know where the horn is located on my 2011 e90. Anyone knows where it is?

[Mk23]

Originally Posted by liliceman13300

All horn systems are almost identical. BMW does have a few extra computers thrown in there for things but in the end its a simple 12 volt current that triggers the horn. Here's what you'll need to do to make it work on the BMW:
Cut the 2 wires that go directly to the horn, these are going to be used as triggers for a relay.
Get a Bosch relay (most Hella kits come with one) and wire the 85 and 86 terminals to the BMW horn wire. You will probably need a multi-meter to figure out what is + and what is -, but if you don't have one you have a 50% shot of getting it right and if you guess wrong it won't do any damage.
This is the tricky part: you need to run a new wire (something like 10 or 12 gauge) to go to the relay to power the horn. The Prius has the battery in the trunk, just like the BMW, but it has a 4 gauge wire run to the hood up to a terminal. I just tapped it off of that, you will need to find out where you can tap a + signal with sufficient amperes. Ground is easy..just bolt a wire somewhere on the body.
As for mounting the horns...good luck, that's the custom work you'll have to do. My advice is don't put it in front of the radiator or near very hot or moving parts. If you put it in front of the radiator and get in a low speed collision you can do extra damage to the radiator. The very hot or moving parts thing is self explanatory. Hardware stores sell cold rolled steel that works great for custom mounts.

Good luck!

Awesome thanks. Any idea if there is a DIY anywhere with pics? Either E90 or other bimmer forums? Would make it much easier if so.

Originally Posted by rbtamms

I took my Hella Supertone out of my Acura TSX before trading it with my 328i Sedan. Now, I'm planning to install the horn but I don't know where the horn is located on my 2011 e90. Anyone knows where it is?

No idea, going to check the Bentley manual on the day I try and put this sucker in.

[Mk23]

Bump hoping someone has a link to a DIY or at least some info on how to mount the 2 supertones.

[fenixxishot]

Also very interested but if no one figures it out by the end of june I will hopefully have this installed by then

[Mk23]

Originally Posted by fenixxishot

Also very interested but if no one figures it out by the end of june I will hopefully have this installed by then

Going to just wing it? Make sure you don't block any air flow to any vital components (i.e. radiator, intercooler, oil cooler). That's been one of my biggest concerns is where to mount.

[campbelly]

Ever heard of hornblasters? http://m.youtube.com/index?desktop_uri=/

[Mk23]

Originally Posted by campbelly

Ever heard of hornblasters? http://m.youtube.com/index?desktop_uri=/

I have indeed. Not looking to scare people for my own amusement though, just want something to scare the crap out of morons who think it's okay to merge into me and CONTINUE to merge into me even though I'm honking.

How could no one have done a DIY on these? I figured e90post would be the place to have one...

Can someone who has installed one at least tell me where they ended up mounting theirs?

[tony20009]

funny that this post appears today. I was driving today and some dude had a horn that sounded for all the world like a locomotive's horn.. He laid on it when another driver nearly collided with him.

I was a good 100 feet away and it scared the bejesus out of me. That sucker is loud!!!! I truly jumped outta my car seat and slammed on my brakes, and I wasn't doing anything untoward.

It didn't hurt that we were about 200 yards from a rail crossing at the time.

Anyway, were I changing my horn, it's what I'd get. It's loud and has some real "authority" behind it.

As goes the two sample horns you linked above, I wouldn't bother with either of them.

[Mk23]

Originally Posted by tony20009

funny that this post appears today. I was driving today and some dude had a horn that sounded for all the world like a locomotive's horn.. He laid on it when another driver nearly collided with him.

I was a good 100 feet away and it scared the bejesus out of me. That sucker is loud!!!! I truly jumped outta my car seat and slammed on my brakes, and I wasn't doing anything untoward.

It didn't hurt that we were about 200 yards from a rail crossing at the time.

Anyway, were I changing my horn, it's what I'd get. It's loud and has some real "authority" behind it.

As goes the two sample horns you linked above, I wouldn't bother with either of them.

I could only bring myself to get such a horn if I had a truck, on a BMW it's just weird and out of place. Train horns are best left to Trucks IMO.

[fenixxishot]

So I found the stock horns I believe which look like if removed would be great mounting spots. They are just behind the bumper reinforcement bar. I'll take a picture in the morning since I have the bumper off.

[Mk23]

Originally Posted by fenixxishot

So I found the stock horns I believe which look like if removed would be great mounting spots. They are just behind the bumper reinforcement bar. I'll take a picture in the morning since I have the bumper off.

Thank you sir! That info is exactly what I was looking for, a pic would be a bonus too. Eagerly awaiting it.

[fenixxishot]

I didn't forget I have the pic but I cant find my cable so this may have to wait until tomorrow. Sorry.

[fenixxishot]

alrighty these are the pics of what I am pretty sure are the stock horns. There is one below each headlight and you can actually see one of them on the driver side if you peel back the plastic tire lining.

[Back in a Subie]

That is the same spot roughly that the horn is located at in my girlfriends MINI, she had a Stebel air horn that we installed. Was really easy, just removed the old to make room for the new, used same mount spot, wire it up and you are good to go.

[rbtamms]

Yesterday, I installed my Hella Supertone Horn directly to stock wires. I noticed that there are two wires instead of one which I usually found in my Acura & Honda where a relay is necessary. According to my research that if a horn is connected directly to stock wires, the horn sound will eventually fade. Since hella is a german product, maybe the horn is designed to hook up directly to german cars. I don't know if I'm correct, but I tried it anyway.

There's no dash error & the horn is working properly, but I will keep observing the horn behavior if it will deteriorate. I will take a video of my car with the sound of the horn later.

[norcal_cyclist]

Originally Posted by liliceman13300

All horn systems are almost identical. BMW does have a few extra computers thrown in there for things but in the end its a simple 12 volt current that triggers the horn. Here's what you'll need to do to make it work on the BMW:
Cut the 2 wires that go directly to the horn, these are going to be used as triggers for a relay.
Get a Bosch relay (most Hella kits come with one) and wire the 85 and 86 terminals to the BMW horn wire. You will probably need a multi-meter to figure out what is + and what is -, but if you don't have one you have a 50% shot of getting it right and if you guess wrong it won't do any damage.
This is the tricky part: you need to run a new wire (something like 10 or 12 gauge) to go to the relay to power the horn. The Prius has the battery in the trunk, just like the BMW, but it has a 4 gauge wire run to the hood up to a terminal. I just tapped it off of that, you will need to find out where you can tap a + signal with sufficient amperes. Ground is easy..just bolt a wire somewhere on the body.
As for mounting the horns...good luck, that's the custom work you'll have to do. My advice is don't put it in front of the radiator or near very hot or moving parts. If you put it in front of the radiator and get in a low speed collision you can do extra damage to the radiator. The very hot or moving parts thing is self explanatory. Hardware stores sell cold rolled steel that works great for custom mounts.

Good luck!

Almost - never cut factory wiring for any reason. Find a way to use the factory connectors with your new add-on. Damaging a factory harness could have repercussions when trying to get warranty work done. These cars are sensitive enough to voltage fluctuations and grounds. I will usually find a way to either insert the wire into the factory harness or as a last resort use a vampire tap somewhere inconspicuous. I've seen vampire taps change the resistance of a wire enough (once removed) to cause a slew of issues downstream.

[iBoost]

Originally Posted by rbtamms

Yesterday, I installed my Hella Supertone Horn directly to stock wires. I noticed that there are two wires instead of one which I usually found in my Acura & Honda where a relay is necessary. According to my research that if a horn is connected directly to stock wires, the horn sound will eventually fade. Since hella is a german product, maybe the horn is designed to hook up directly to german cars. I don't know if I'm correct, but I tried it anyway.

There's no dash error & the horn is working properly, but I will keep observing the horn behavior if it will deteriorate. I will take a video of my car with the sound of the horn later.

Is it a lot louder than stock with stock wiring?

[fenixxishot]

I never got a chance to work on mine but it looks like a pretty easy mod. Does the sound difference justify price and effort?