Hella supertones wiring horrors

[smp291]

Ok guys I have done the search a bazillion times. I have tried everything that has been writen up about wiring these things to the WRX. So if anyone has pics of their install or a detailed wiring diagram that a monkey could understand, I would be very grateful if you hooked me up, so to speak....
TIA

Garrett

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[moogoob]

I'm not sure how different the wrx is, but on my 00RS, I wired the relay to the stock horn wiring(to trigger the relay), Then I ran a wire from the bat with a 20amp inline fuse to the relay.
From the relay I split the wire like a Y so each horn gets a + wire. Ran separate grounds back to the stock ground location right in front of the battery.
I'll run outside and get the relay connector numbers for ya. I'll also locate a few pics of my install too.
EDIT:

[clsmooth71]

Smp291,

I emailed you a little earlier w/wiring instructions for the Supertones, but it looks like Moogoob's already beaten me to the punch. His directions look great, especially the pics and are similar to the guidelines I just sent you.

Hope you get it up and running soon! Btw, DON'T let anyone stand directly in front of the car when you hit the horns. They don't sound that loud when you're inside the car, but TRUST me, they will hurt your ears if you get caught in front of them!

CL

[mikkyo]

I did the horns and found the wiring not too difficult.
It depends on what you want to do.
Are you planning on keeping your OEM horns?
Hooking all 4 up at once?
Using a switch to go between OEM and Hella?
Or ditching the OEM and just using the Hellas?

Do you have the instructions that came with the horns? They have a simple wiring diagram which preety much covers all those options.

I highly recommend a good crimp connector kit with crimper/strippers for all your electrical installs. I recommend soldering too, however all factory connectors are just crimped, but professionally by a machine.

I used 14 guage wire for the Hella side of the relay conenctions and 18 guage for the trigger side.

I'll try and get some pictures in here when I get more time.

Mounting the horns
You can remove the OEM horns and stick the Hellas in their place, which should be pretty easy, or mount the Hellas off the top crossbar of the radiator so they show through the grill (see the install info on scoobymods), which will impeed airflow slightly.

I made my own mounting brackets, mounted the horns to the radiator center post, kept the OEM horns in place, put in a switch to toggle between them, and stuck the relay for the Hellas behind the washer bottle.
Making the brackets was a real pain, but other than that it is pretty straight forward.

Wiring the horns
I grounded the Hellas together and to the radiator center post where the OEM horn is mounted using dielectric paste on the connections(can be purchased at auto parts or good electronics store - Radio Shack didn't have it in my area).

The other contacts (+) on the horns go together and then to the horn relay. I routed the wires along the bottom of the radiator toward the driver's side and out the hole where the factory horn wiring goes, along the fender above the battery, then down under the washer bottle, and up the between the washer bottle mounting brackets to the relay, pin 87(one side of switch).

Power I got right off the battery + connector and used a inline 10A fuse to the relay, pins 85(coil) and 30(switch to make horns go).

Once you get the horns mounted and the wiring all done up to the relay (except the trigger ground that goes to the cabin) you can test the horns, just ground the other pin, 86(coil) and the horns should scare you.

For the switch wire to activate the hellas, I ran a wire from the relay(pin 86) at washer bottle along the firewall through the grommeted hole above the clutch pedal and through into the under dash.

I used spade connectors on the relay terminals.
Once you have tested it and know it works, you can hook the switch wire (going through the firewall), to the relay, and tape up the relay connections. Go nuts with the electrical tape, make sure you tape the connectors to the relay body and the wires together too, being careful not to wrap the 4 wires together so tightly you short out the connections(if you didn't use covered connectors), or pull the connections off the relay. It should be nice and sealed so no water can get in. I mounted it with 2 zip ties to the washer bottle bracket because I didn't want to drill a hole, or fashion yet another bracket, and there were no existing bolts that could go through the relay mounting tab properly.

Switch for just Hellas
For the trigger wire under the dash, if you ground that wire the Hellas go off, so if you want a separate switch for just the Hellas, you could just mount a momentary pushbutton switch, with one side grounded and the other going to this trigger wire.

Using the factory steering wheel horn switch
Our factory horns are a negative system, so the steering wheel horn switch is easy to use for triggering the Hella relay.

Finding the horn switch wire
You can tap into the horn switch under the steering wheel in the black 5 pin connector B68(pin 1 Red/Green stripe), or just before the horn relay B243(pin 1 Red/Green stripe), or as I did, between the interior wiring harness connector B62 and the front body wiring harness connector F45 (pin 10 Red/Green stripe). These are giant connectors under dash, near clutch pedal top, mounted vertically in a plastic frame to hold them in place). It really helps to have the official Impreza Wiring book to locate connectors and stuff.

Using all 4 horns
If using all four horns, just tap the horn switch connector and attach the trigger wire from the Hellas to the tap. Or you can remove the spade from the plug, piggyback solder the trigger wire onto the spade connector and stick it back in the plug - see the hard part below.

Cutting or not
If you don't want to cut the wiring (you'll need to in order to separate the horn switch from the OEM horns, or if you want to be able to switch between OEM and Hella) you should take the extra time to remove the spade connectors from the plug you want to use. Cutting is far far easier.

If cutting, un-tape, and remove the plastic wrap of the wiring harness that has the wire you want to use until there is a good amount of that wire exposed. I usually want at least 3 inches, the more the better. Clip the wire in the middle of your revealed section. If using just Hellas, no OEM, take the side that goes to the horn switch and hook that to the hella Trigger wire. Press the horn switch. If it worked solder it or use spade connectors on both parts. Tape it up and your are done.
If switching between Hellas and OEM, skip to the hooking up the switch part.

HARD PART if you want to...
Pretty much all the factory connectors have a spade connectors *inside* the plastic housing that makes up the plug. These are the same connectors that you can use on the relay or crimp on wires for taps and stuff. So it is ideal to use them and you can return everything to stock without resoldering wires later if you have to.

Find the plug/wires you need to use(the steering column connector is easiest) and unplug the connector. Use a flashlight and look closely at the connector, you will see there is a little plastic tab inside next to each pin on the connector (sort of like the tab that holds a wire/zip/speed tie together and causes the clicking noise). Take a super-fine eyeglasses-type mini-flathead screwdriver and push it into the connector on the side without the wires, in the hole where the pin you want to remove is, between that pin and the little piece of plastic that holds the pin into the connector. When you push the little tab away from the metal pin, you will release the pin from the connector and can pull it out with the wire from the wire side of the connector.

It takes patience and some close inspection, but every connector has removeable spade connectors. You can take the wire you want out of both sides of the big plastic connector. Then you plug the big connector back together, leaving your wires out, to be hooked up as you want.

Now you have all the standard factory connections hooked up at the connector you pulled the horn wires out of. One wire goes to the horn switch, one to the horn relay, if you ground one, the OEM horns will go off, the other is the steering wheel horn switch.

Piggybacking wires
If you want all 4 horns, you can piggyback your Hella Trigger wire onto the back of one of these connectors(the female is the easiet for me). Put the wire along the wire that is already on the connector and solder it in place. This connector (and its counterpart) can then be pushed back in the big plug where it came from and plugged in.

Just Hellas
If you just want Hellas and are ditching the factory horns, hook the switch wire from the Hellas to the steering wheel horn switch wire and you are done. Press the horn switch and Hellas go off. Tape up your connection and be done.

Switching between Hella and OEM horns
Take the trigger wire for the Hellas that you pushed through the firewall, hook it to one side of a SPST switch. Take the wire to the OEM horns(they go off when you ground it) and hook it to the opposite side of the switch. Take the steering wheel horn switch wire and hook it to the common(middle usually) terminal of the switch.
Tada! Press the horn switch on the steering wheel and one set of horns will go off. Flip your switch and the other set will go off.
This is handy in CA since there are noise requirements for horns. If you hit the hellas and a cop is nearby and chooses to harass you, you can flip the switch back to OEM horns for a demo.

[smp291]

Yeah Im a jack ass. I was so intently worried about the wires from the stock horns that I forgot to ground the damn realy! Thanks for the pics and write ups!

Garrett

Ps They are loud as hell!!

[4Play]

what if you dont wanna use the factory button and use your own button how would you do that?

[gpatmac]

Originally Posted by moogoob

I'm not sure how different the wrx is, but on my 00RS, I wired the relay to the stock horn wiring(to trigger the relay), Then I ran a wire from the bat with a 20amp inline fuse to the relay.
From the relay I split the wire like a Y so each horn gets a + wire. Ran separate grounds back to the stock ground location right in front of the battery.
I'll run outside and get the relay connector numbers for ya. I'll also locate a few pics of my install too.
EDIT:

I followed your pic and diagram, but didn't put the 20a inline...yet.

I've got blue/black to 86, black to 85, positive terminal (w/o fuse, but I just bought one) to 30, and a Y from 87 to the horns. I read somewhere that the supertones have an ambiguous polarity, but I've got the positive from 87 going to the left connector on each horn and the right connector is grounded to the chassis.

My horns click real nice, but no Supertone.

[Wazazell]

Originally Posted by gpatmac

My horns click real nice, but no Supertone.

Make sure the horns are wired in PARALELL, not in series...

[holland_patrick]

This has to be the BEST MOD EVER...

It was fairly easy to do I messed upbut following the directtions for the WRX posted her but then read the directions and they work like a charm.




These things are much louder the stock I feel much better and I really can't wait to honk my horn now.

[Mr Kleen]

I would like to get louder horns, but I think that the supertones might be overkill. how about mounting them behind the bumper cover? that way they're hidden (stealth attack ), they don't interfere with airflow to the radiator, and they won't be quite so loud. would this work and would I have to worry about blowing off the bumper?

[Phy6]

How about mounting them in place of the fog light covers?

[poon warrior]

stealth attack....LOL

[LegacySTI]

Let me see if I understand this correctly, if I dont want to use the OE I just unplug the OE and run those wires to the hellas?

[Lexington]

Originally Posted by clsmooth71

Smp291,

I emailed you a little earlier w/wiring instructions for the Supertones, but it looks like Moogoob's already beaten me to the punch. His directions look great, especially the pics and are similar to the guidelines I just sent you.

Hope you get it up and running soon! Btw, DON'T let anyone stand directly in front of the car when you hit the horns. They don't sound that loud when you're inside the car, but TRUST me, they will hurt your ears if you get caught in front of them!

CL

Thats why I bought mine

[Hah72215]

Need some help... I'm still confused.

I hooked up the hellas as follows...


I spliced the black and blue stock horn wire and ran the wire to 86
I grounded both of the hellas to the center post where the middle stock horn was mounted and hooked up both hellas to 87
I ran a wire from 30 to the positive terminal of my battery with an inline fuse
I ran a wire from 85 to a ground on the fender where my relay is.

I have a switch with 3 plugs power, acc, and ground.

I ran a wire from the power to the positive battery terminal
I ran a wire from the ground to the same fender ground

Which wire do I splice into to attach to the acc plug on the switch?

I want to switch between stock horns and stock horns and hellas.

I tried splicing into the wire going into 86 and the switch triggered both the stock and hellas and the actual horn on the steering wheel didn't do anything.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[Hah72215]

OK I figured out what I did wrong and I hooked everything up to the switch and it works. All I have to do now is hook up the stock horn to the switch. Is this just the wire that goes straight to the horns (black/blue)? I highlighted the part of the instructions that mentions the wire. I just want to be sure before I splice into it.

Switching between Hella and OEM horns
Take the trigger wire for the Hellas that you pushed through the firewall, hook it to one side of a SPST switch. Take the wire to the OEM horns(they go off when you ground it) and hook it to the opposite side of the switch. Take the steering wheel horn switch wire and hook it to the common(middle usually) terminal of the switch.
Tada! Press the horn switch on the steering wheel and one set of horns will go off. Flip your switch and the other set will go off.
This is handy in CA since there are noise requirements for horns. If you hit the hellas and a cop is nearby and chooses to harass you, you can flip the switch back to OEM horns for a demo.
01-19-2003 12:19 PM

[Hah72215]

Bump...

Little help please.

[SubasaurusWrex]

haha, I just hooked these up and I didnt even use the relay, no trouble at all.

[4Play]

I dont have the clock spring anymore just the button on my momo wheel how do i do it then?

[mikkyo]

Originally Posted by Hah72215

OK I figured out what I did wrong and I hooked everything up to the switch and it works. All I have to do now is hook up the stock horn to the switch. Is this just the wire that goes straight to the horns (black/blue)? I highlighted the part of the instructions that mentions the wire. I just want to be sure before I splice into it.

If you got the factory horn switch wire, you had to cut or separate the connectors, so you have a wire going to factory switch and wire going to factory horns.
You take the factory horn switch wire and make it the common that will trigger either horn set, and take the other end(oem horns) and put it on one side of the hella/oem switch, and the hella trigger on the other side.

[semaj]

Ok... so I want to use the stock steering wheel switch, stock relay, etc...I am removing the stock horns completely to replace them with hellas. Can I simply remove stock horns, connect the ground and relay wires (pin 87) to the hellas, and call it a day? Or do I need to upgrade the wires, and put in an inline fuse, or another relay???

[semaj]

Originally Posted by SubieDrift

Ok... so I want to use the stock steering wheel switch, stock relay, etc...I am removing the stock horns completely to replace them with hellas. Can I simply remove stock horns, connect the ground and relay wires (pin 87) to the hellas, and call it a day? Or do I need to upgrade the wires, and put in an inline fuse, or another relay???

Anyone got an answer for this?????????

[SubasaurusWrex]

i didn't even use the relay

[semaj]

Originally Posted by SubasaurusWrex

i didn't even use the relay

you mean you only used the stock relay, but not the Hella one? right?

[RumblingREX]

Originally Posted by SubieDrift

Ok... so I want to use the stock steering wheel switch, stock relay, etc...I am removing the stock horns completely to replace them with hellas. Can I simply remove stock horns, connect the ground and relay wires (pin 87) to the hellas, and call it a day? Or do I need to upgrade the wires, and put in an inline fuse, or another relay???

That is how I did it. I am 99% sure that the stock horns need 12V also, you can hear the stock relay under the dash. You don't need the relay that came with the kit if you go this route. Your Hella's get 12V directly. I actually just used the wires in the front for the stock horns. Didn't run any new wires from the stock relay or add any fuses. Stock wiring is sufficient.

Hella loud!

J