Now I've Done It. I Broke My Horn.

"lunr" (lunr) 05/30/2016 at 22:04 • Filed to: None

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So... Now I’ve finally done it. I broke the horn switch(es) in the steering wheel of my ‘13 Subaru Forester. Combination of enthusiasm of using the Hellas and today’s aggravating trip to drop off my wife at the airport, the horn refuses to turn off except for pulling the fuse.

Unfortunately, it appears Subaru makes you buy an entire airbag module to fix these 15 cent switches (Must be 15 cent, cause, damn, are they made of the thinnest, flimsiest plastic, and I didn’t punch the steering wheel that hard).

Anyone know the part number for these switches or if they’ve been used in other models so I can find a Subaru airbag module that isn’t $300? Or which part I can wrap tape around (the bolt?) to prevent it from grounding so I can put the fuse back in and use the unbroken bottom switch? (Broke the top 2 switches)

Picture attached of the part from the YouTube video that explains how common it is to break these switches ( !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! )

Stephen the Canuck > lunr 05/30/2016 at 23:14

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I can't help you, but this post informed me of exactly what was wrong with my old 2005 Grand Am. It had the exact same issue, so I drove it for two years with the horn relay pulled.

JGrabowMSt > lunr 05/30/2016 at 23:49

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That’s a horrendous tutorial. It explains nothing, and the video is blurry.

Anyway, any chance you could take yours apart and actually look at what may be broken?

Boxer_4 > lunr 05/31/2016 at 00:22

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I find it ridiculous how flimsy those plastic spacers/insulators appear to be, and that they don’t seem to be a separately available part.

I did find a semi-useful explanation , and more useful pictures , on reddit (not sure if you found these during your searches).

It’s possible the spacer has a part number molded into it somewhere

I think my course of action, if you can’t find the part number and new spacers, would be to attempt to repair the broken spacers with the proper epoxy (so long as you have all of the pieces).

Barring that, you may have to find an airbag module specifically for the spacers. I would probably move the spacers to your original airbag, since I’m not sure I would trust a used airbag module (but that’s just me).

Subaru used the same airbag module assembly (not sure about the specific airbag and inflator) in the following models:

2008-2009 Legacy and Outback

2008-2011 Impreza (All Models)

2012-2014 WRX and STI

2009-2013 Forester

You may be able to use the spacers from an earlier 3-spoke airbag module vehicle (2005-2007 Legacy and Outback, 2004 WRX and STI, 2005-2007 Impreza (All Models)), but I’m unable to verify that.

lunr > JGrabowMSt 05/31/2016 at 00:39

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It is a bad video without the context of why he was doing that. Mostly linked to it cause he had a good pic to use because I forgot to take pics of the broken pieces before I put it back together.

But basically two of the three spaces are essentially shattered at the top of the bolt. Too flimsy to glue and for the life of me don't see the missing pieces.

lunr > Boxer_4 05/31/2016 at 00:49

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I agree with the ridiculousness of it. Bad design, too. Such thin plastic.

That Reddit post is exactly what’s broken / wrong with mine.

Thank you for the cross-reference model years. That’ll help find me a cheaper part somewhere where I can use the clips. When I search for my pecise MY / generation, the airbags are $300-400 used on eBay. Then I’ve seen some as cheap as $100 for some of the cross-referenced models you listed. I will definitely look at the earlier models and see if they use the same spacers.

I would not be suprised if Subaru was using the same parts for the last ten years. I pulled apart a 2000 Impreza the other day and the hood latch structure, while shorter than my Forester, was pretty much the same shape, and it had the same cut-out holes.

Boxer_4 > lunr 05/31/2016 at 01:06

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I wish you luck on finding those parts.

Subaru does have a tendency to use common parts for a long time. I’ve noticed several parts on my 2009 Forester (battery tray, coolant expansion tank, license plate lights, and probably more) that still use the old Fuji Heavy Industries LTD. logo:

They haven’t used that logo since 2003!

Wagon, semi manual, not brown, turbo because volvo > lunr 05/31/2016 at 04:18

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A few years back I got all aggro on my 87 hilux horn and wedged the switch stuck with a liberal application of my riteous fist of death. Stuck in 3 hours of solid traffic after working a 13 hour shift I lost it when somebody cut me off jumping out of the carpool lane. Had to pull over and disconnect the horns. Serves me right for overreacting.

lunr > Boxer_4 05/31/2016 at 17:15

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A lucky trip to a salvage yard about 45 minutes away brought me to three different Subaru’s to dig through their airbags. One was a 2011 Legacy, another was a mid-2000's Outback, and the last one was a 2005 Forester. The former two had blown airbags and the ‘05 Forester still had its airbag intact.

All three had spacer switches I could salvage. Ended up pulling two “good” ones off the Legacy and bought the airbag off the ‘05 Forester for $23 plus $2 entry fee. Helluva lot cheaper than $400 for a new airbag.

Took some trial and error to see which switch was in better condition to fit in whatever space in my Forester’s airbag module, but now my horn is working again and not grounding itself the entire time.

Attached is a picture of the airbag I bought, and another picture of a “good” switch next to one of the broken, smashed switches.

So, I’m very happy I found a salvage yard with a decent selection (another “parts recycler” wanted $275 for an airbag). If anyone is ever in the same situation, it looks like you can swap the switches from any Subaru made in 2005 or after.

Boxer_4 > lunr 05/31/2016 at 17:39

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Glad you were able to find the parts you needed. This should prove useful to anyone else who happens to find themselves in this situation.

nkmo > Boxer_4 06/28/2016 at 13:18

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OP from that Reddit post here. Still looking for solutions, so good to hear I have options. I temporarily fixed the problem by putting some adhesive weather stripping under the relay, but a couple months of 100 degree weather must have caused the adhesive to fail and start honking again :( Ended up just pulling the fuse.

Boxer_4 > nkmo 06/28/2016 at 13:52

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Thanks for the initial pictures and post!

I still find it frustrating that those switches are not available separately. Maybe we’re all looking in the wrong place, but I don’t know.