Fixed my anemic horn!

[joey128]

There has been many posts about the wimpy horn so I won’t get into that. And, there are plenty of posts describing how to remove the frunk tub so refer to those for instructions. Total cost ~$50 and 2 hrs of time.

Here’s how my horn sounds after (just a quick blast to not annoy neighbors):



The video speaks for itself about the significant improvements. Not only can it now be clearly heard by other drivers but also as a theft deterrent as part of the car alarm.

Parts:
1. Mini 2-tone air horn
https://a.co/d/f3EMSTb

2. (1 set) DT 2 Pin wire harness - for horn connector
https://a.co/d/c87qXV9

3. (1) M6 1.0 (SS) lock nut - to secure relay to existing stud

4. (1) Round head M8 1.25 SS bolt - to secure horn to wheel well

5. (2) SS washers - for mounting the horn

6. 2' of 16 gauge tinned copper wire and water-tight crimp connectors


Horn location: Mounted horn to the plastic wheel well which required drilling a 1/4” hole (see photo).

Crimped mini horn relay to Male DT harness —> to plug into vehicle’s wiring (horn switch)

Mini horn relay crimped to a Y connect with 1 end to Female DT harness to plug original horn and the other end to the new mini horn. (That’s right, I am re-using the existing horn AND adding an additional 2-tone mini air horn)

Mini horn relay location: I mounted the relay underneath the 12v distribution block.

There is a cavity on the underside of the block with a M6 threaded stud (see photos). I bolted the relay to this stud as well as ran a (-) ground off of it to the horn. I also feed (+) power from the relay to the 12v block.

So, existing horn switch —> relay —> Y connector to original and new horns.
Relay is feed (+) from the 12v block and grounded (-) to the stud.

- Used DT connectors to horn switch and original horn, so no splicing into any wiring
- All wiring between the relay to horns were cleanly zipped tied down to look as OEM as possible.

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[Chez]

Thx for posting this. Looks like a great option

 

[ksurfier]

I’m planning to do this, thanks for the write up!

 

[Rivian Owner]

So not all Rivians are created equal. I went with Real Wheels' horn upgrade for the Rivian. I wanted a no drill easy solution for my horn. Everything was well packaged and their instructions are good. I pulled the Rivian apart and went to place the horn on the bracket according to the included instructions. What I found after pulling the tub was that my charge connector cables (big orange cables) are lower in the wheel well than other Rivians and there isn't a way to move the cables up. Real Wheels was great and supported me the best they could. The owner has an R1T around the same vintage as mine, but he has the clearance similar to the above pictures, we compared VINS and I sent him a series of pictures showing the lack of clearance. It was end of the day, so the next day one of the engineers called me to discuss further how I might best get the horn to fit.

Real Wheels ended up telling me I could get my money back if I couldn't get it to fit and to go ahead and modify the horn as necessary. After a lot of bending of their brackets, creating some supplemental brackets to lower the horn and position it just right (the body of the horn had some material removed to help with clearances) I was able to get the horn installed without drilling holes, and with clearances around the high voltage cables. It is a tight fit and took considerable effort, but I didn't want to add rattles or rub through insulation on a high voltage cable. I'll probably check it in a couple of weeks to make sure things aren't rubbing.

Real Wheels wiring harness provided all the connectors, the relay, the fuse, and pretty much everything else I needed to install the horn. Had I been a little more lucky and had more space, Real Wheels' kit would have been a slam dunk. The Rivian now sounds like a diesel locomotive honking its horn. Nice to hear that others haven't had to spend their whole day getting a louder horn!

 

[ksurfier]

Thanks Joey!
This was a fun one, I’d say a little outside my wheelhouse but was able to make it happen.

before:
Rivian Clown Car

After:
Mini air horn

will add some pictures and more info if any one is interested, thanks to Joey and others for the basics. While not super difficult, I’d put it at a 8-9 for the average joe, maybe a 4-5 for those that know their way around cars/electronics….my top tools were a flashlight (Rivian) and a step stool…

 

[Rae11]

You really gotta be OCD like me to do this lol

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