Horn Upgrade

So after 36+ years I finally decided to upgrade the bike’s horn (ok, so I’m a little slow getting around to things). Like all KZ’s, the original horn didn’t have an authoritative voice. I wanted more oomph, but did not want to cut any stock wiring or change the appearance of the bike at all. I wanted the stock horn to continue working to offset the new horn’s deeper tone. I wanted the new horn on its own circuit because the stock horn runs through switches and shares a fuse with other items, plus the wiring for the stock horn is rather light gauge. Also, I wanted the new horn to receive power directly from the battery so it gets maximum voltage.

The solution was (is) a FIAMM 72112 Freeway Blaster Horn (Low Tone - F) triggered by a JEGS Performance Products #555-10556 40amp relay. I made up a pair of splitters to plug into the stock horn wiring where it was originally attached to the stock horn. One wire from each splitter attaches to the stock horn, and one wire from each splitter attaches to the relay control wires. This enables the normal horn button to activate the stock horn and the relay control. Since the relay control draws only a tiny bit of current, there is no risk of blowing a fuse. I ran a new wire from the positive battery terminal, through a fuse, to the “hot” terminal on the relay, and ran the output circuit of the relay to the new horn. The horn has its own circuit for ground that terminates at the horn’s mounting screw.

The most challenging part of this project was making the new horn and relay “invisible” as I did not want to alter the appearance of the bike. Fortunately, there is a perfect spot for the horn and relay. The horn fits very nicely up inside the frame directly behind the steering neck, and the relay fits behind it in the triangle formed by the frame’s backbone tubes. I made a bracket that runs between the two coils’ front mounting bolts for the relay (it is mounted on top of the bracket) and a bracket that fits up in the cavity behind the steering neck for the horn. Kawasaki was kind enough to make a hole on each side of the frame brace, so I used those existing holes to mount the horn bracket. The whole works fits up in there and can barely be detected with the fuel tank removed; in fact, if you didn’t know it was there you wouldn’t be able to find it. When the tank is on the bike none of the new stuff is visible at all. The mouth of the horn faces down and slightly forward and is just behind and above the stock horn. Concealing the wiring and fuse were easy; the fuse is behind the left side cover next to the flasher relay and the wiring runs along with the stock wiring.

Results? Now when I blow the horn it sounds much better and louder. No more little “Meep Meep” sound. Ed

Oh Ed, this modifying won't be tolerated.

People will be looking for the Cadillac when you honk now.

:laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

Huh? Was that Ed's bike? :lol:
Nope -- his is much louder! :woohoo:



Good Fortune!

:laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: Man, that thing is loud! Ed

Here's the wiring diagram for the additional horn. Ed

I had a bad horn on my Voyager. It has two. I replaced them both with a pair of Fiaamm Freeway Blasters, one high and one low tone powered through a relay. The beast sounds like an old Buick. It really gets peoples attention on the road. You can't see them as they are buried under the fairing. I'll be doing the same thing to my KZ1000 this winter. I hate that 'meep meep' sound.