Supachink

Hey guys, i figured out tonight why my horn doesnt work. The steering wheel isnt grounded. Is tehre supposed to be a place where the steering wheel grounds at? I know i could just ghetto rig it and have a wire running somewhere, but how was it supposed to work OEM? Any pics or diagrams?

Thanks

Greg

streckfu's

Do you have an airbag wheel?

Supachink

No i just have the regular 84 porsche pad wheel ... looks like this
http://cgi.ebay.com/PORSCHE-944-S2-S...QQcmdZViewItem

lilredpo

Search the threads, when I had the same problem someone had posted a way to reground the horn and column.

Good luck!

Renn 951

The ground path is through the steering coupling. If you're "ungrounded" then your coupling is probably worn and needs to be replaced. Try honking the horn while moving the steering wheel back and forth and see if you get some horn sounds.

Supachink

Yeah the horn honks in some places, does that mean that i need to replace the coupling or can i just clean the connection spots?

Renn 951

You can try cleaning the connectoins first but I doubt that will do you any good. I had to replace the coupling in my Turbo last year. The part was $350. The good news for you is the job should be pretty straightforward on your car. On the Turbo there's a lot of interferences that have to be removed to get to it making the job a royal pain if you do it yourself, and expensive if you have a shop do it. It probably takes twice as long on the Turbo.

You're in Alexandria, so if you need a shop recommendation let me know.

Supachink

Cool, thanks, ill look in to it. Ive been doing searches, would the coat hanger trick work for this or is it just that hte steering wheel coupling is just way too worn?

Renn 951

I don't know about the "coat hanger trick" but I'd imagine there are ways you can rig something up to bypass the coupling to complete the ground. IIRC, from the lower part of the coupling the ground wire goes to the cross member underneath the engine.

HOWEVER, your real problem is the coupling, not the horn ground. If it's worn enough that the ground is lost it's time to replace it. Steering and brakes are two things you don't want to compromise with on your car IMHO.

dlknight

Hi guys,

I just replaced the intermediate shaft on my 1987 944 S (power steering) and as the Universal Joints were in a different position I have ended up with an upside down steering wheel. Haven't had time to reposition it at the moment but the horn has now started acting up (working intermittently) and the indicators (turn signals) don't automatically cancel anymore....

When I reposition the steering wheel will it rectify these problems ?

Cheers

Dave K.

Renn 951

Dave:

No, your problem is not that your steering wheel is "upside down", it's that the steering wheel is on the wrong side of the car! Put it back on the left hand side of the car where Dr. Porsche intended it to be!