Musical air horns!!

**waverunner** · 24-02-2021, 18:08

Bit of a wild one here but I know there are a few MOT guys who may know.

I'm sure I've read somewhere that musical air horns are illegal now, I know you can't have an air horn as your main horn, and before you ask, I'm not intending to but I've a set and thought it would fun to fit on our old Landy.

**katana** · 24-02-2021, 19:44

From the Testers Manual . . . .

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 tone

**Graham** · 24-02-2021, 20:24

as katana pointed out, mot wise musical horns have been illegal for most cars since i was a kid, nothing to stop you fitting them, you just have to have a normal horn as well

**waverunner** · 24-02-2021, 22:41

Thanks for the reply guys.

Something tells me that there illegal full stop, even as an extra gimmick, I found a set in all my junk that I'd forgotten about and I bet the youth haven't even heard a car play Dixie before

**wildo105e** · 25-02-2021, 08:27

Originally Posted by waverunner

Thanks for the reply guys.

Something tells me that there illegal full stop, even as an extra gimmick, I found a set in all my junk that I'd forgotten about and I bet the youth haven't even heard a car play Dixie before

And that is probably lucky for them. All the ones I have heard in my days never seemed to play properly.

My understanding is they not allowed for road use. So you can drive around a field and play them. But on the road it is just a Pharp on the horn.

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**Graham** · 25-02-2021, 09:35

Originally Posted by wildo105e

And that is probably lucky for them. All the ones I have heard in my days never seemed to play properly.

My understanding is they not allowed for road use. So you can drive around a field and play them. But on the road it is just a Pharp on the horn.

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the lunch van comes round here and plays dixie every morning, like he does every place he stops..........................

**wildo105e** · 25-02-2021, 10:29

Maybe a train horn like the Americans love to fit to their “trucks” or pickups in the UK

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**stevieturbo** · 28-02-2021, 14:37

Originally Posted by wildo105e

And that is probably lucky for them. All the ones I have heard in my days never seemed to play properly.

My understanding is they not allowed for road use. So you can drive around a field and play them. But on the road it is just a Pharp on the horn.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I had a set many years ago....but the last note was always missing. The little disc inside that plays the tune would have needed another hole drilled in it.

But as long as you have normal horn...there's nothing to stop musical being fitted. Just don't let plod catch you using them, as they'll come down on you harder than they would people out rioting.

And air horns are perfectly legal too...whether one or two horns. They just have to sound at the same time...not alternate or separately etc. Same way you could have a pair of dual tone electric horns

**waverunner** · 01-03-2021, 13:39

Cheers all, to my knowledge now and reading, they are illegal to use on the public highway, mainly because of the different tone sounds, mimicking emergency vehicles etc.

Not illegal to have fitted as a secondary device, and used only on private land, so there going on the tractor!!!!