Horn Only Works With Steering Wheel Turned

Welcome to your first post on Prius Chat .

The cheap clock springs offer mixed success.

I’d go with the genuine part, but shop around to ensure you get a good price on the part.

Good luck and keep us posted .

 

Hi Osher,
Have you found a fix for the horn? The horn on my 2011 stopped working and the dealership is telling me it costs $800 for the horn/airbag assembly!? The horn worked when the steering wheel was turned to the left. Now today the radio doesn't turn on with the regular knob but if I press one of the station selectors the radio turns on and off, all of them to the same station. There seems to be some electrical short somewhere. The Toyota dealership near me is a scam and I'm lost as to what to do. What did you end up finding out/doing? Thanks!

 

Hi ,

Though I'm not Osher, you've got a common problem, nearly always meaning you need to replace the "spiral cable" in your steering column, often also called "clock spring" because of what it looks like.

The part itself may be a few hundred dollars at the dealer. Replacement isn't hard if you can use a torque wrench and have access to a steering wheel puller, which a local auto parts store may have for you to borrow. Fifteen dollars'll get you in to the repair manual at techinfo.toyota.com to see the procedure. Be sure the part about making sure the airbags have no power before taking the wheel apart is clear to you.

Some people report they can manhandle or beat the wheel off the shaft without the puller. I'd still borrow the puller.

There are non-Toyota spiral cables on eBay for much cheaper, but for as infrequently as it wears out, I'd spend the money on the real one and be done with it for a good while.

-Chap

 

Thanks ChapmanF! The dealership says the part itself is $800. The service itself isn't that much. Is there a way to replace just the cable and not the entire assembly? They tell me I can't just purchase the cable from them, I need the entire airbag/cable assembly. And then today the radio is shorting out. It seems there is a bigger issue or maybe they didn't seat the assembly back it well enough? What do you say? Thanks!

 

Anyone know what it would be here:

Steering Wheel for 2011 Toyota Prius | Toyota Parts

Item one, the whole steering wheel, is $224.