Almost every car comes equipped with a horn to alert other drivers and civilians as a safety measure to keep people aware of the vehicle.
However, if your car horn starts honking by itself, you may be wondering why it does that. I did some research, and here is what I discovered!
Why Is My Horn Honking By Itself?
A car horn honks by itself usually because the relay, which is the circuit of the car horn, is bad, causing the car horn to malfunction. Plus, the horn pad could have an issue, such as a stuck horn button, causing the car to honk without you pressing the horn pad.
Do you want to learn more about why your car horn honks by itself? I compiled a list of factors below, so read on!
1. Bad Relay
Your horn relay is a part of your car’s horn circuit that is responsible for controlling power to your car’s horn.
Occasionally, your horn relay could have a bad relay, causing various issues like making your horn honk by itself.
Normally, a bad relay is a primary purpose for many issues in the car horn since the relay is the car’s main component that makes your car honk.
Since the horn relay gives power to the horn, a bad relay would deliver little to no power, making the horn malfunction.
Generally, you would hear a clicking sound when you are trying to honk the horn, and the relay may be delayed, causing your horn to honk when you do not press the horn.
2. Issues In The Electrical Wiring
Typically, car horns work by using electricity, which means that there is wiring in the car horns to supply the car horn with electricity.
Electrical wiring is also important for a car horn since the electrical wiring will make the horn honk whenever you press the horn pad.
For instance, the car horn would be wired to the horn pad so the driver can press the car horn as needed.
However, a problem within the electrical wiring can cause various issues, such as the car horn honking by itself.
Usually, this means the wiring has been damaged, such as a short circuit in the horn’s electrical wiring.
A short circuit in the car horn’s wiring could cause the horn to randomly honk by itself, especially if there is a sudden surge of energy.
3. Stuck Horn Button
A car horn will have a horn button under the part where you press the horn to make the horn honk.
However, this horn button can get stuck, causing the horn to honk by itself or continuously honk without you pressing it.
Usually, this will mean an issue with the horn button, which can be the horn pad.
For instance, if you hit the horn pad too hard, it could jam the button within it, causing your car horn to honk randomly when you do not press it.
4. Broken Clock Spring
Generally, most cars will have two clock springs, and the clock spring we will be focusing on today is the clock spring in your steering wheel.
That said, the main purpose of this clock spring is to let the horn button activate while keeping the wires for the horn in the same place.
If the clock spring breaks, it is easy for the horn wires to move around, potentially causing your horn to honk on its own.
For example, if a wire in the car horn gets misplaced due to the broken clock spring, it can cause your car horn to blast without you pressing the horn pad.
Typically, a broken clock spring occurs in an older car where the clock spring wears out after some time.
Otherwise, a clock spring is usually hard to break or move, but it is possible if you made a very hard turn or your card experienced a recent collision.
5. Aftermarket Accessories
Aftermarket accessories are car parts that the original manufacturer does not make for your car and often offer various accessories.
For instance, there is an aftermarket accessory called a remote start that lets a person start their car when they are nearby but not inside the vehicle.
However, this remote start could lead to minor errors, which include making the car honk its horn by itself.
6. Problems With The Body Control Modules
Your car has body control modules that coordinate the activation of various auto electronic units, such as rolling down your windows and flickering your headlights.
However, if your body control modules experience a shortage, these body control modules can make your car horn honk by itself.
Further, because your car horn is powered by electricity, bad body control modules can misfire, causing your horn to honk without anyone touching the horn pad.
7. Poor Ground Connection
If your car horn creates a clicking sound and honks randomly, the issue could be from a poor ground connection.
Typically, you can try cleaning the ground connection and then using the horn again to make the horn work normally.
If the horn still does not honk when you want it to and honks randomly, you will likely have to replace your car horn.
To know more, you can also read our posts on why your gear shift is stuck in park, why your garage door is beeping, and why your engine is so loud.
Conclusion
Typically, a car horn can honk by itself because of an issue within the relay, causing the circuit of the horn to malfunction and make the horn honk on its own.
Also, other issues, such as problems with the car’s body control modules or faulty electrical wiring, can make your car horn honk by itself.