2009 Vibe 2.4 Base Horn Relay Location?

[rogerbiebl]

I recently had the Takata Passenger airbag replaced and now the horn does not work. I swapped the fuse (# 33 in the owners manual) with the spare - both looked viable. I connected the horn directly to the battery and it beeped. When I depress the steering wheel horn, I do not hear the typical relay click. The owners manual does not show the location of the relay. The dealer service department that replaced the airbag wants $242.00 to replaced the horn relay (two hours labor to replace the relay?). I asked the parts department the location of the relay so I could complete the task myself and they gave me a diagram of the engine department fuse panel # 21 which the fuse box cover indicates is "Engine Fan #1". I even took off the drivers side airbag to inspect the horn connections which were good. I knew the horn worked because I honked at a deer in the road on the way to get the airbag replaced. Where is the horn relay location on Gen 2 Vibes???? Help!

[tpollauf]

Hello Roger and welcome to GenVibe! This is the exact reason I will likely refuse to have my dashboard torn apart and my pass side airbags replaced! There are very few shops in the country who give a s h i t and take time to do a quality job on replacing these airbags. This dealership screwed up your wiring harnesses, they know it, and now they want to get you for some more $$$ to cover THEIR mistake. Go to the media and expose these slimeballs !!! Does your Vibe have steering wheel controls? Thus you can verify it the clock spring is still good. The steering wheel should not need to come off for a pass side airbag replacement unless it's in the way fro the dash to be removed. I own the three volume set of service manual books and will look up where the horn relay and associated wiring is located and scan & post it here for you. Give me a day or so to dig it up.

[rogerbiebl]

Thank YOU for your time!!! I suspected that Northland Chevrolet of Superior, WI caused the horn problems when they changed the Takata airbag and purposely led me away from the actual cause. In either case, they won't stand behind their work. I am going to write to Takata to see if there have been any other instances of horn problems in Vibes or the Matrix before I pursue an ethics case. Any support I get will be helpful! Thanks again!