Hmmm, let's see. Three British cars, three different horn placements.

MCS - Thumb buttons on the steering wheel = conventional not too cool.

MGC - stalk mounted, push to use = cool and practical for the quick blast.

MGA - dash mounted under radio speaker, allows passenger to honk too = super cool.

Now if we look at the dates of manufacture (1962 MGA, 1969 MGC and 2003 MCS), we note that contrary to conventional wisdom, all that is new is not better. The art of hornblowing reached its zenith in the 1950's and has been declining ever since.

 

>>25 years of riding a motorcycle (without an accident) makes you very aware of your surroundings and even more aware of the need to make yourself seen. Overboard? Probably. But that is better than "underboard" I guess.

Yeah, but if you ride a bike, then you should be very comfortable pushing a button! Atleast all the bikes I've owned all had push button horns.

 

>>Are all you compulsive horn honkers also the people who drive with their emergency flashers on in rainstorms?

You don't think I would drive in a storm, do you?

 

>>As opposed to the more civilized option of shouting obscenities and using the "finger"??

No as opposed to the truly civilized way of dealing with traffic issues and road morons, studiously ignoring them while thinking pretty evil thoughta about their persons and ancestry......why would anyone think tooting a horn accomplishes anything is beyond me. The horn is an EMERGENCY device, like in "look out!!!!!" or a convenience when used in moderation as in "toot I'm here to pick you up" or in "toot....how ya doin???"

 

I only honk to say Hello
otherwise get out of the way

 

I love the horn buttons I can honk casually at other MINIS and I can honk and swerve at the same time with one hand whilst somebody attempts to occupy my space.

 

best horn placement i ever had was on my '89 range rover. at the end of the turn indicator. centred to my 4/8 or 8/10 hand placement i could always reach it easily... needless to say i do not like the placement of the mini horn. i try not to use it; which says alot living and driving in los angeles

 

Well, those of you who think horns are cute need to be stuck in atraffic jam in Mexico City, Cairo or BA.......aaaaargh!!!!!! Would serve you right too.....pet peeve....REAL pet peeve......aaaaargh......!!!

 

On several occasions, I scared myself on the highway when accidentally pushed the horn instead of the cruise control button. I have to work on my palpation skill. On a couple of emergency situations, I ended up punching the hell out of the center steering wheel emblem and then realized that the button is located elsewhere. .

 

<On several occasions, I scared myself on the highway when accidentally pushed the horn instead of the cruise control button>

I have done this too!

Also, the other day after taking my cat to the vet, I let him sit in my lap once we got into the neighborhood. He likes to prop himself up on the steeringwheel and look out of the windshield. He was doing just that when he accidentally laid a paw on the horn button and let out a 10 second BEEEEEEEEEEEEP before I could remove him from the wheel. The poor maintenance man passing by on the sidewalk was terrified!

 

>>Well, those of you who think horns are cute need to be stuck in atraffic jam in Mexico City, Cairo or BA.......aaaaargh!!!!!! Would serve you right too.....pet peeve....REAL pet peeve......aaaaargh......!!!


I don't think horns are cute I do believe that a lot of people on the road are absolute morons and don't pay attention to where they are driving. I live in an area where a good percentage of the vehicles are jacked-up-in-the-air SUVs with mirrors higher than my roof line and the vente-double-decaf-no-whip-soy-chai-latte sipping soccer moms gabbing on their cell phones don't seem to think it is neccessary to look or signal before switching lanes, backing out of a parking space, or pulling out into traffic. If I am not 100% sure that they can see me, or that they are even paying attention, I am not going to leave anything to chance - that is what the horn is for - to make yourself visible.

 

I ABSOLUTELY agree! In such a small car (amid an SUV-happy society) it is important to be aware of your surroundings at all times. I am very paranoid about someone changing lanes into me because they cannot see me, and I will not hesitate to honk if I anticipate that they might even be CONSIDERING switching lanes. I have always driven small cars and found that it has made me a better driver. Since those persons driving larger-than-life SUV's often don't find it neccessary to signal, check their blind spot or use their mirrors, I have to take responsibility for making sure they are aware of my existence. My horn has saved my butt in probably a HUNDRED such incidents. I do a lot of highway driving and find that many people are not aware of the cars surrounding them in such situations.

I partially understand the problem. Once, while driving my mom's SUV, I almost changed lanes into a smaller car! Thankfully, I always signal and they saw me and *ahem* HONKED to warn me. On this particular occassion, I DID check my blind spot but was rather hasty about it and somehow did not see this vehicle.

In no way do I think using the horn is "cute" (well, except when I enjoy the infrequent honk at an unsuspecting scantily clad jogger). It is an absolute neccessity. I think that it is a more realistic solution to the dangers of everyday traffic situations than cursing the ancestors of the idiot who cut you off. And for the record, I feel that cursing anyone's ancestor's beyond a sister or a mother is disrespectful and out of line.

 

<<Well, those of you who think horns are cute need to be stuck in atraffic jam in Mexico City, Cairo or BA.......>>

By the way, I'm not talking about TRAFFIC JAMS here. People who honk in traffic jams are just about as dense as they come. IF NOBODY IS MOVING- IF WE'RE ALL STUCK IN THIS SAME SPOT- WHAT GOOD IS HONKING GOING TO DO YOU? People who honk in traffic jams boil my blood. I'm talking about honking to warn a person who is going to change lanes into me or who is backing out of a parking spot without looking (speaking of pet peeves...)

 

>>Are all you compulsive horn honkers also the people who drive with their emergency flashers on in rainstorms?

I'm not a compulsive horn honker but I've been in a few rainstorms where driving with the emergency flashers on sure seemed like a good idea. Is safety uncool or something? I need to know so I can be cool in my old age........OK, except for the piercings, I ain't doing that.

 

like YuccaPatrol said; the horn button positioning is excellent, allowing you to maneuver with hands in optimum positioning while honking with thumbs - perfectly suited for multitasking.

wait, hold on I have an email and IM to respond to.....lol

 

I know there are options for louder horns, but what i was wondering is if there are options for quieter, less aggresive horns.

The reason i ask is because in places like carribean islands, the taxi drivers and stuff honk their horn like crazy...they honk at every friend they pass, every other taxi, to signal a right turn, and to tell someone to hurry up. But their horns are much more subtle and less intrusive. For people who use a horn for things like backing up and making people aware of their position, this might be a better option. I think it would be cool if my MINI had a quieter more european beep (and a louder one for emergencies of course)

 

>>I know there are options for louder horns, but what i was wondering is if there are options for quieter, less aggresive horns.

The problem with that is that the other vehicles that need to hear you the most - high-up-in-the-air trucks and SUVs - are typically well insulated and have very noisy tires that may make your horn ineffective.

It is absolutely amazing to me the number of drivers are totally unaware of their surroundings. Like I said before, riding a motorcycle - or small car for that matter - makes you a much better driver. At ANY POINT in which I am driving I can describe the exact position of every car around me, any potential problems ahead, any pedestrian or bicycle threat, cross trafic, whatever. Some people keep their eyes glued directly ahead thinking that it will keep them out of accidents. Wrong! Look at banged up cars, people. Most accidents come from the side or the back and are VERY easy to avoid if you pay attention and stay out of situations in which you cannot move when and if anything goes wrong. Oh well, that is my rant for the day.

 

The position of the horn buttons was definitely strange at first, but now I'm used to it. It makes more sense because you can keep both hands on the steering wheel, so if you have to use the horn you just move your thumb over rather than your whole hand. Sometimes you have no other choice but to use your horn. I'm amazed by the amount of people that don't check their blind spots or just don't pay attention. I've become extremely vigilant when I'm out driving because I encounter these types of drivers several times a day. If only I lived on my own private island

 

My last three cars, and the last four cars the kids have had (yeah, they totalled all four ) had horn buttons exactly where my MINI does, so I'm very used to the placement. I suppose its about what you're used to. As for nostalgia over the steering wheels of the past, yeah, I'm totally there. I loved those cars....but then air bags are an improvement and I guess those rings would interfere. All in all I've got LOTS of other more improtant things to be annoyed about. Heck even the cupholders and the rear-view mirror never bothered me.

 

let's call it 2 million vehicles in the the LA area.
everyone honks their horn say twenty times a day (10 lane changes, 5 pedestrians, 5 morons) = 20 million horn toots!!!!!!

Do it in terms of the Indians or the Chinese..........
The only good horn is a dead horn. Wanna drive defensively, drive defensively....quietly......

 

[QUOTE=Rick-Anderson]I am horn happy. I constantly tap my horn and embarrass my girlfriend.
_____________________-
You're a horny guy, kind of.

Cheers.

 

It makes it harder to honk at the chipies on the side of the road. Now instead of honking while I drive by a hotie I just fumble with the wheel and look stupid!

 

hotties are different....you're allowed to honk at hotties........Ah honks at ole Hillary the babe Clinton every time ah sees her.......

 

At first i didnt like the placement of the horn buttons on my car, but now i've grown to love them. When i got into a car accident with Bella (not my fault btw) I was able to honk the horn, jam the brakes and scream for my life all at the same time.

 

did it hurt???