Beagler Posted August 4, 2021 Share Posted August 4, 2021 Are they legal. Conflicting views on the web. Some pass MOT though a horn must have a single tone, apparently. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonathan Kay Posted August 4, 2021 Share Posted August 4, 2021 For England...7.7. Audible warning (horn)An audible warning must be loud enough to be heard by other road users.For vehicles first used on or after 1 August 1973, the sound emitted must be continuous or uniform. It cannot be harsh or grating.The following cannot be used as an audible warning: • gongs • bells • sirens • anything that has more than one toneHowever, on vehicles first used before 1906 the audible warning can be a gong, bell or siren.https://www.gov.uk/guidance/mot-inspection-manual-for-private-passenger-and-light-commercial-vehicles/7-other-equipmentJonathan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beagler Posted August 4, 2021 Author Share Posted August 4, 2021 Thanks for that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Vine Posted August 4, 2021 Share Posted August 4, 2021 anything that has more than one toneThat's a tad ambiguous, as it depends on whether "anything" refers to a single warning device. Using two horns simultaneously that have different tones is ok, not to say very common.JV Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonathan Kay Posted August 4, 2021 Share Posted August 4, 2021 "That's a tad ambiguous, as it depends on whether "anything" refers to a single warning device. Using two horns simultaneously that have different tones is ok, not to say very common."Are we approaching the notorious:?Jonathan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SM25T Posted August 4, 2021 Share Posted August 4, 2021 So you can have double or triple airhorns as long as they all sound together, you cannot have multiple airhorns that play in sequence, as in a tune, nor can you have an aroogah style klaxon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
7 wonders of the world Posted August 4, 2021 Share Posted August 4, 2021 this is possibly the smallest most powerful horn if your looking for something to get you noticedhttps://www.mx5parts.co.uk/stebel-nautilus-compact-horn-black-p-3356.html?utm_source=google&utm_medium=googleshopping&utm_campaign=googlebase&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIzZLt3YqY8gIVp-jtCh03RwbKEAQYBSABEgIP2vD_BwE Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leadership Team Toughie Posted August 5, 2021 Leadership Team Share Posted August 5, 2021 My understanding, from members who are also traffic police, is that double or triple airhorns sounding simultaneously are also illegal, as referenced by Jonathan above.anything that has more than one tone Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Vine Posted August 5, 2021 Share Posted August 5, 2021 Re #8:That would appear to make the Stebel (in #7) illegal. That doesn't sound right. Or do you mean more than one airhorn unit sounding simultaneously? As I commented in #4, sounding two separate units simultaneously with different tones is commonplace.JV Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roger Ford Posted August 5, 2021 Share Posted August 5, 2021 "My understanding, from members who are also traffic police, is that double or triple airhorns sounding simultaneously are also illegal"Trafpol aren't lawyers, and generally have a tenuous grasp of traffic law in my experience. Most cars have two horns, each with a different tone, since two tones combined makes a more penetrating noise than a single tone. I see absolutely no reason why air horns should be treated any differently from conventional (diaphragm?) horns. BTW, anyone know where you can get ice cream van chimes? I want to fit one to my race car for the cool-down laps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roger Ford Posted August 5, 2021 Share Posted August 5, 2021 Here's the actual legislation. Usually better than reading "guidance" written by a civil servant. Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986Note section 37.10(d) “two-tone horn” means an instrument which, when operated, automatically produces a sound which alternates at regular intervals between two fixed notes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David aka Blue7 Posted August 6, 2021 Share Posted August 6, 2021 I used to have a klaxton or oogah horn installed but changed it for triple air horns. They play in sequence and are operated by a different button and I still have duel standard horns fitted, well not standard, they are the snail horns as recommended on an earlier thread. The snail horns are used for warnings and air horns used occasionally for fun eg folk that wave ... so the air horns get by far the most use Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leadership Team Toughie Posted August 6, 2021 Leadership Team Share Posted August 6, 2021 #11 Roger,Thank you for that link. I'm indebted to you for the clarification. I stand, very happily, corrected.In view of the wording of the Act, I shall now be seeking a pair of FIAM air horns, which will get regular use on roundabouts, for all the drivers who evidently don't see me. Oh, and those that sit in the outside lane of clear dual carriageways, oblivious to the traffic behind them.Love the idea of the ice cream chimes on the cool-down laps. But all that additional weight! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonathan Kay Posted August 6, 2021 Share Posted August 6, 2021 Jonathan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beagler Posted August 6, 2021 Author Share Posted August 6, 2021 So if used on a separate switch for responding to acknowledgement of the car for example, is this legal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Vine Posted August 6, 2021 Share Posted August 6, 2021 Re #15:Could be, I suppose, if it's not used as an "audible warning device"?JV Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SM25T Posted August 6, 2021 Share Posted August 6, 2021 #14 .... they are yummy. Check out the two different flavour coatings too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roger Ford Posted August 6, 2021 Share Posted August 6, 2021 Love the idea of the ice cream chimes on the cool-down laps. But all that additional weight!I'm carrying 8kg of lead ballast to bring me up to minimum weight, so not worried about a bit of extra weight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leadership Team Toughie Posted August 6, 2021 Leadership Team Share Posted August 6, 2021 I'm carrying 8kg of lead ballast to bring me up to minimum weightSounds like a great excuse for a good meal and a drink the night before an event. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roger Ford Posted August 6, 2021 Share Posted August 6, 2021 Like I need an excuse! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grumpy the 7th Posted August 6, 2021 Share Posted August 6, 2021 re #5.If that red button was used round these parts you'd get your car kicked in when (IF EVER) you managed to get past the throng of lycra Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toby S Posted August 9, 2021 Share Posted August 9, 2021 I've just fitted PIAA dual tone 500hz and 600Hz twin horns which sound together - give a 115 decibel continental (higher pitched) squeak - tends to get people's attention !! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Vine Posted August 10, 2021 Share Posted August 10, 2021 Re #4: To clear up the ambiguity (in my mind, at least), I thought I'd ask the folks at DVSA. This was the reply from a Policy Specialist (MOT Testing Service):"Essentially, it does not matter how many trumpets there are, producing however many different notes, as long as they all sound simultaneously to give a single tone. More than one tone means, for example, the horn sounds like an old fashioned emergency vehicle (nee-naw, nee-naw), or plays a tune (colonel Bogie used to be common!)"So, "tone" doesn't mean what it would to, say, a musician (that is, a single note) but rather a single sound, comprising one or more tones.JV Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonathan Kay Posted August 10, 2021 Share Posted August 10, 2021 Thanks for chasing that, John.Jonathan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beagler Posted August 10, 2021 Author Share Posted August 10, 2021 So is the Klaxton legal or not. It is a single sound but the pitch goes up and then down. The one I had consisted of a corrugated disc spun with a pawl rubbing on the disc. The disc sped up and then down to give the typical sound. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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