Lotus Elan Central

by **Ekapol** » Wed 01.11.2006, 22:09

Right horn switch broke (physically). Any replacement switch that might fit in there?

Do you know who is our LEC switch guru? The switch shape is quite different than normal electric press on switch. Thank you.

by **Stef** » Thu 02.11.2006, 12:01

Are there 2 switches to get a full on horn effect?! :roll:

by **Ekapol** » Thu 02.11.2006, 21:25

Just that when it is the time to use the horn, I don't think my brain can remember that I only can use the left hand to honk it.

by **Doug** » Thu 02.11.2006, 23:00

non-US Elan owners will not have the GM airbag wheel with the little horn buttons behind the airbag cover :shock:

Good thing is it is a GM wheel and you can probably find them in the junkyard--bad thing is they may not want to let them go without the airbag so may not sell them separately? They are a separate part. Maybe someone who has junked their Lotus wheel for an aftermarket one can give disassembly advice and maybe even the part?

by **Ekapol** » Thu 02.11.2006, 23:28

Thank you Doug. Let the search begins :-)

by **Kjeld** » Fri 03.11.2006, 11:45

That GM wheel is such a piece of junk. The horn switches pretty much turned to dust when I pulled apart my wheel, trying to track down the horn failure. Wound up as a good excuse to replace the wheel. True, I don't have an air bag any longer, but it was replaced with a much nicer wheel. I can get in and out of the car easier now too. Reading the speedo is tougher, I'll grant that.

Also, since you are on horns. Doug posted a piece a few years ago (I just searched for it without luck), about a cheap and easy to install air horn. Came from an aftermarket parts catalog, whose name I cannot remember. Had an Italian souding name. Anyway, the horn is terrific. A piercing, somewhat high pitched air horn sound, that you would expect from an exotic. Rather than the Pontiac family sedan tone that comes from the stock horn.

Never heard whether anyone else installed one of these. Can't imagine why someone would run with those cheap GM horns for the sake of orginality......

by **Doug** » Fri 03.11.2006, 20:02

and Kjeld had a sound clip of his ferrari horn too . . .

by **Ekapol** » Fri 03.11.2006, 20:49

Piece of junk

Griot garage sells those horn I recall. I also think about getting one. Click Me! 3 types to choose from.

Funny that, few weeks ago, I talked to Marie that this could be a good excuse for me to get that Elise steerling wheel like the one she has. One horn switch broke, get a replacing wheel, seems like a good logic to me. :-D

by **TheBard** » Fri 03.11.2006, 21:05

Hmmmm, 12 volt, 10 amp, would that mean we could just slip out the old horn, and patch in one of those Griot compact Italian jobbies.... or would the wiring be more involved?

Cheers,
Ian

by **Doug** » Fri 03.11.2006, 23:12

Ekapol wrote:Griot garage sells those horn I recall. I also think about getting one. Click Me! 3 types to choose from.

that's the one Kjeld has :smt023

I like your plan as long as you promise not to smack up Stripey and need an airbag . . . :shock:

by **Kjeld** » Sat 04.11.2006, 03:48

Nope, no wiring issues at all. I mounted the new horn where the old one was. It fit in that space, as if it was designed for it. Took a 2-3" strip of tin and drilled a few holes to attached it.

I think Marie sourced an aftermarket Momo wheel with airbag. I guess the US Elise's would have one too. Pricey though.

by **Ekapol** » Sat 04.11.2006, 08:41

Horn on order. Smaller black version, and quite a list of other goodies :-D

From what I heard, Elise S2 steering wheel would not fit. The collar design is totally different. Marie currently has one from Elise S1. Feels great in my palm nice and small, but no airbag though

Even with new horn, still 50% ... workable. There must be some switch out there that would fit

by **Kjeld** » Sat 04.11.2006, 09:00

Until you replace the wheel, you may just have to remember which switch works and which does not. One thing I am certain of. You won't go back to the old wheel and horn set up.

Like many of the interior appointments (and the brakes for that matter), you just have to wonder what the people at Lotus were thinking when they strapped on such cheap junk on a car so otherwise carefully designed...

by **Ekapol** » Sat 04.11.2006, 09:24

Well said Kjeld. Also, can't agree more with the quote below :evil:

The GM wheel is *very* poorly built. The rim is wrapped in imitation leather that is hand-sticthed to make it look more real. The airbag unit doesn't fit squarely into the wheel. Underneath the airbag, torn-off pieces of masking tape are used to hold the wiring in place.

The poor quality of the GM wheel is really evident in it's flimsy horn buttons. These have got to be the cheapest piece of **** switches known to man. They are made out of a very brittle, clear plastic. I have probably used my horn only one or two dozen times, yet I found both buttons cracked and they practically disintegrated in my hands. The horn button on the Momo wheel is in the proper position on the center of the crash pad. This makes it easier to press than the ones on the spokes of the airbag wheel, or the one on the end of the turn signal stalk in older Esprits. Also, I don't know how but Momo managed to keep their logo on the horn switch. Older Esprits with Nardi wheels required the Lotus badge instead.

From gglotus site: Click Me!

by **Ekapol** » Sun 05.11.2006, 08:55

Horn Sample
Horn Sample#2 Horn Sample#3 :-D

by **Fubar1764** » Tue 07.11.2006, 07:50

Completely agree. Best way to get the buttons replaced is to go to a junkyard. I tried a Pontiac dealership, and not surprisingly, they just scratched their heads. I got mine from Nitroman off his wrecked Elan. The switch isn't meant to last. The spring is guided by a tiny plastic pin, which when it breaks (and it will), renders the horn useable if you're lucky. So, you push down harder, causing the rest of the pieces to break.
I thought about a Raid wheel, but the airbag wheels is VERY expensive. I also thought about an S2 wheel (off Monty's Pinky I), and that didn't fit either. Grr. :evil:

by **Dave M** » Wed 08.11.2006, 06:22

Ekapol wrote:One horn switch broke, get a replacing wheel, seems like a good logic to me.

That's my logic...when something breaks: upgrade! :wink:

Or when trying to rationalize a non-replacement upgrade to the significant other, pretend it is broke. :roll:

by **Kjeld** » Fri 10.11.2006, 07:20

okay, I just heard the Ekapol's horn mp3. Please tell me, I am begging you, you did not install an after market horn on your Lotus that plays "I wish I was in Dixie".......

Please tell me that you are just a gifted air horn player, with a sense of humor.......

by **Ekapol** » Fri 10.11.2006, 21:06

Yes, I did.. :oops:

No, Kjeld. Of course not. Doug will hear it from Santa Rosa and come to kill me the next second. :shock:

This morning, the Black compact Italian horn arrived in my office, sitting next to my laptop now :-D

by **TheBard** » Sat 18.11.2006, 05:03

Hey Ekapol,

You fitted that horn yet? Any comments, hints/tips? I just ordered mine after another run in with a 'lifted' pickup on the commute home.

Ian

If my rear wing is level with your fog lights, do you really need them switched on in heavy traffic? :evil:

Lotus Elan Central

50% Horny

50% Horny

Who is online