Shoptalkforums.com

i have both front and rear suspension kits mounted on my karmann ghia . has anyone installed the front , on a VW beetle or ghia . mine is a 70 ghia . have a problem with the horn switch .how do i make it work .

Use the indicator arm with the slip ring contact? The mid 70s part.

i know what makes the horn work in a stock column application . the problem is it's no longer stock .on the rack and pinion , the is no longer in the stock location . (its lower) . there is a kit came with the front suspension . it has a shaft with universal joints on either end , a bearing to stabilize it , and a connecting pin that gets welded in the shaft .the problem is getting the horn switch wire to a terminating point to make it work .

when the shaft is shortened , it comes rite up to the steering column . the connecting pin is solid so the wire can't pass through it , and winds up inside the column . any ideas . the pictures up above might explain it better .

Later horn circuit doesn’t have a wire inside the column. The whole column is earthed (there is a short wire to bypass the rubber steering coupling), via the steering box & beam.

A wire goes from the earth side of the horn (live side is constant), to the indicator arm. There is a slip ring on the indicator arm which contacts the underside of the steering wheel. Pressing the horn button shorts that connection from the horn to the column (earth) therefore powering the horn.

In your situation I assume the column earths via the steering rack, so if you use the later horn wiring it should work.

it looks like a 71 column is what i'm looking for .

will a 1971 turn signal indicator switch fit in a 1970 steering column ?

i finished installing the 71 turn switch in the 70 column . it solved the horn wire problem by eliminating it like you said . thanks again for your input .

Great. Glad that worked for you