View Full Version : Upgraded the horn on my Ninja


Grn99Kawi
September 26th, 2009, 10:12 AM
The stock horn never really bothered me much... sounding more like the Warner Brother's roadrunner with a sock in its mouth.. but ther other day I had to reach for the horn 3 times.. and once I leaned on it for some ass clown in a Mercedes Benz "courtesy car" who couldnt decide which of 2 lanes he really wanted while taking calls on his cell phone... I showed him where the sky was using a selected finger.. I dont think he ever heard or saw me...

Last night I went to Autozone and picked up the fabled "Freeway Blaster" low note horn for $20.. install was very straightforward. I used the bracket that came with the horn and I used black foam (like those that mount tranny coolers up against radiators) to insulate it like the OEM bracket does with rubber.. I'm not sure if that is necessary, but I did it anyway...

The sounds is louder, but best of all it sounds like a 'car' and not a big wheels.

Some idiots still might not hear me, but at least I have a better fighting chance... I made a quick video showing the difference:

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Alex
September 26th, 2009, 10:20 AM
Good job! :thumbup:

andrewexd
September 26th, 2009, 10:25 AM
yeah sounds alot better. The stock horn is useless on the freeway...

noche_caliente
September 26th, 2009, 12:41 PM
Thanks for the comparison!

welcome2thedawn
September 26th, 2009, 12:46 PM
that's awesome!!! i must have one!

bobaab
October 14th, 2009, 01:57 PM
Nice! It sounds way better than the stocker. The stock horn is more of a suggestion rather than a warning...I never use it.

Nemesis
October 14th, 2009, 02:06 PM
I actually want to do this to my bike but I'm usually the one that gets honked at. LOL!

ManyCavies
October 14th, 2009, 02:42 PM
Thats great! Thanks for the info:D
I still want an air horn to wake up the idiots that seem to aim for me when eye contact is made, target fixation anyone.:(

g21-30
October 14th, 2009, 02:48 PM
Good Job! Sounds just like my '09 (Freeway Blaster)

ajaygraci
October 14th, 2009, 06:07 PM
sounds just like a car nowm good job and thanks for that vid ... i thought it would sound like a 8wheel trucker but still its a huge improvement

Nemesis
October 14th, 2009, 06:10 PM
I just saw the vid...I wanna install one of those train horns on mine. LOL!

M
October 17th, 2009, 06:39 PM
I went with a FIAMM low tone. I ended up having to mount the horn to the upper left radiator bolt, so that I can still use the triple tree in conjunction with my front stand.

websniper
November 22nd, 2009, 01:58 PM
I've installed the same horn. It's a marked difference. And, watching the wrench jump when he hit the honker while performing my inspection was added entertainment value!

BlueRaven
November 22nd, 2009, 03:44 PM
:thumbup: i never thought of changing my horn but will definitely look into it for the future. I have a few months to do mods ...darn long canadian winters :smow:

Snake
November 22nd, 2009, 04:38 PM
It's definetly alot more of an attention getter.

Rayme
November 22nd, 2009, 06:13 PM
I'd like to get hella supertones, they are hella loud! You dont want to horn it by accident when in your garage/shed :P

BlueRaven
November 22nd, 2009, 06:22 PM
it may cause you to scream like a girl if you were to accidentely hit the horn in the garage ...lol

H.I.D.
June 18th, 2010, 09:15 AM
I noticed that the stock horn draws 2.5 amps, and the freeway blaster
draws 5 amps. Is there any concern about installing the freeway blaster
because it will draw 5 amps. Would it "overheat the wiring" ?

H.I.D.
June 18th, 2010, 09:18 AM
I forgot to mention, the bike that i am referring to is the new gen- 2008 ninja 250

tjkamper
June 18th, 2010, 09:49 AM
Sounds like a good investment of $20 and a Saturday.

jonthechron
June 18th, 2010, 10:57 AM
Dontcha worry bout it, my horn draws about 18 AMPS, air-horn ftw

mrlmd
June 18th, 2010, 11:13 AM
Most of these horns, and that's like a knock-off of a Stebel air horn, CANNOT be directly wired up to the stock horn button and wires. They need to be connected usually directly from the battery to a relay and then to the horn, and the horn button and existing wiring the goes to activate the relay. The Stebel and similar ones are protected by a 20 amp fuse and heavier wires are used to power them from the relay than are used for the original horn wiring. If you run the horn like that you have a risk of burning out the horn button and the wires, or melting them, and in a severe accident, could start a fire.
See the 2 wiring diagrams attached. You should have gotten a relay with that horn, otherwise go pick up a 20 amp rated relay and a 10 or 20 amp inline fuse and do it correctly. That may be only another 5 dollars or so. Otherwise you may not have any horn soon or some other problem with your bike.

jonthechron
June 18th, 2010, 01:08 PM
Most of these horns, and that's like a knock-off of a Stebel air horn, CANNOT be directly wired up to the stock horn button and wires. They need to be connected usually directly from the battery to a relay and then to the horn, and the horn button and existing wiring the goes to activate the relay. The Stebel and similar ones are protected by a 20 amp fuse and heavier wires are used to power them from the relay than are used for the original horn wiring. If you run the horn like that you have a risk of burning out the horn button and the wires, or melting them, and in a severe accident, could start a fire.
See the 2 wiring diagrams attached. You should have gotten a relay with that horn, otherwise go pick up a 20 amp rated relay and a 10 or 20 amp inline fuse and do it correctly. That may be only another 5 dollars or so. Otherwise you may not have any horn soon or some other problem with your bike.

+1

Always wire things up the proper way, even though it will appear to "work" by simple plug&play, long term reliability may be compromised. Use a relay to wire the air horn, check for the proper AWG, make sure fuses are of correct Amperage rating, etc. If you don't think you can do-this-yourself, have someone with competent electrical experience do it for you.

AgentCircus
July 18th, 2010, 05:13 PM
For those of you with the FIAMM Freeway Blaster, where did you buy it? I checked Autozone and they didn't have it.

gogiburn
July 18th, 2010, 06:47 PM
go to www.autohornsplus.com and get the M80 Stebels.$19 for 2 one hi one lo Awsome orns includes the relays.
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