Horn button sticks on

The horn button/air bag on my 2010 987.2 CS now sticks when it is depressed. I can slip a putty knife between the horn button and the steering wheel, and pop the horn button back up. However, if the horn is depressed again, it will stick and the horn will be stuck on again. It has the same parts as a 997.2 . In the threads I have read here, the poster resolves the problem by having a dealer or indy fix it. 1. Is it necessary to replace the horn button/air bag unit with a new one? 2. Is it difficult or dangerous to remove and service or replace the horn button/air bag so that the job should be done by a professional? 3. I have neither a dealer nor a Porsche indy where I live and have done most of my own repairs. If removal of the air bag is a DIY project, is there and article or YouTube for that?

Hey there k-man Isle you can see my previous post below which goes into some detail. #7 I'm assuming since yours is a 987.2 it is one of the steerings with a round airbag. No need to get a new unit if the binding cause is the same. The decision to DIY or get a tech depends on your comfort level and experience. The removal process is simple. it is the re-insertion that can be tricky. Here is a sample video from google.

Thank you, eyeofthetiger. The removal and replacement looks simple enough. It appears my fix does not require a new air bag part. I am still not sure what is causing the horn button to "bind", and what is needed to correct the problem. Is the wrapping on the cable for the two connectors causing the unit to bind? If so, what is the fix?

check the post for link #7 and read post #5 also. its usually the blue tape placed on some spots around the airbag module. if yours already has it removed it could be caused by other factors that need further inspection.

Thank you. I will look at it again.

I fixed the problem . In my case the labels and tapes on the airbag module and in the steering wheel were all intact and in place. So I was stumped until I used a strip of paper as a feeler gauge to find where it was binding. I put the airbag module back into the steering wheel and slid the paper around the space between the steering wheel and the airbag module. There are cams (humps) on the sides of the airbag module near the top. The plastic casing for the airbag module had expanded (I have no idea what caused that) and was causing the cams to bind within the steering wheel. My fix was to use a sanding block to reduce the profile of the cams. Problem fixed.

Hi, I pushed my horn too hard on my 2013 Cayenne yesterday, and got the exact problem, I watched the video and tried to push the horn button out with a screw driver, but the button just does not pop out. The following video said just push the spring and no need to pry from inside I do not use the horn very often, is my airbag still good? I am worry about my air bag is also stuck with the button. It will cost over $1300 to buy a new part, or $600 to buy an used one, the local dealer may charge additional for the labor, cayenne's battery is under the driver seat, it is not going to be an easy and cheap job. Is there anyway to pry out the button without breaking the airbag? I assume two people are needed, one push the spring and the other one pry from the front of the steer wheel.

If you've ever removed your airbag - one important thing to avoid sticking and having the air-bag difficult to remove. Put the wires in the guide on the back of the airbag. There is a hook shaped guide on the back of the airbag housing, made of a piece of the housing bent outwards. The two flat wires for the airbag MUST go in that hook. If they don't it's about a 80% chance of them ending up in the wrong place and the horn button binding is the first clue that's happened. I don't have a great picture of the guide - but let me see what I have.. Slip the wires under the hook and put the airbag back in place. It will not bind and hopefully the horn won't be stuck on.

Thanks deilenberger , I just watched another video under Did you just suggest me to use a screw driver to push the wire back to hook through the hold instead of pushing the whole button out? The other thing I suppose to do is to disconnect my battery, I thought if I do not discount the airbag wire, it would be fine to push it out a bit for a simple adjustment. If it does not pop out, it would be wasting time to uninstall the driver seat and reach the battery cable. Is there an extra "electrical lock" requiring me to disconnect the battery before removing the part?

I really don't understand your question. The wires should slide easily with your fingertips under the hook. If they don't you've boluxed something up. It might be they don't have enough slack or flex when connected to the airbag, in that case disconnecting the battery and disconnecting the connectors might be the thing to do... but I was able to get mine under the hook without disconnecting the airbag. The wires ARE flexible - give them enough slack and you should easily be able to move them where they belong. BTW - the photo you show (are these yours?) show doing it ABSOLUTELY wrong, I assume that's from the video above? I have yet to find a U-tube video that shows doing it correctly. Not a single one. And why would you uninstall the drivers seat - in a 987 the battery is in the front trunk (aka Frunk). If it's a Cayenne , the negative battery cable connects to the chassis under the carpeting just in front of the drivers seat. There is a flap there in the carpeting you can lift up, and then remove the acorn nut holding the electrical eye down, and remove the eye from the stud - your battery is then disconnected.

The shared pic was from somebody else's video, I had never been able to release my airbag module by using my screw driver, I could use a knife to pry the button up and stops the horn. I guess the only way to take the part off the steer wheel is breaking it?

I'd suggest visiting a professional. If you can't remove the airbag - then chances are you might set it off trying to remove it. And using a knife - that seems awfully crude. I can't speak to your mechanical abilities, but it seems as if professional help might be a better answer than having an airbag go off in your face.

Actually, I do not have to pry the button up using a butter knife after pushing my horn, my old credit card can do the job, there is no SRS and engine light on currently. I think the local dealer is going to ask me to buy a new airbag module for installation if I wanna go for the complicate repair. I have experience in changing my car's brake system including caliper, pads, brake fluid, I also change my own oil and filters. I recently took apart my fender to fix dents. The local dealer once charged me $450 to diagnostic my SRS light, and then asked for $1000 to take apart my door panel. Therefore, I took the panel off by myself, the side sensor and wiring harness were fine, the issue actually was one wire between the door and the car body was snipped, and the light was cleared after I reconnected the wire, I did not have to open the door panel. I would like to spend more time to figure out how to take off my horn, Porsche comes with a good computer for diagnosis, I could just install a new airbag in the worst case.

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Yes, you most likely have the horn binding problem referenced above. To solve this, you need to remove the airbag, clean up the sticky tape or reroute the wiring harness. There are a bunch of "how-to" articles that describe the process The video in post #7 above is exactly what you need to do. Watch that video (and if you want some others, you can also look at the threads on changing the steering wheel, the first step in that process is removing the airbag). Basically you disconnect power, wait a few minutes, then insert a screwdriver into the steering column to release the airbag catches. The release for the airbag is accessed through a small hole in the bottom of the steering column (or an indentation where you have to make a hole). You are doing this work from under the steering column, not from the "drivers side" of the steering wheel. You most likely don't need to buy any parts, just clean up the ones you have!

The reason the tape may be messed up is the wire wasn't in the wire guide on the back of the airbag when the airbag was installed last time. PUT THE WIRE IN THE WIREGUIDE. That will avoid it getting where it shouldn't be and causing damage and binding. I've looked at about 6 YouTube videos on installing the airbag - and not ONE of them noticed the wire guide. It's there for a reason.

game well, you can try to gently pound the steering with your palm/fist, moving around the whole wheel. this can sometimes gently wriggle the airbag module out to the original position thru gentle vibrations. this worked for me when I hit the issue.

Although I gave up taking the whole airbag module out, my horn button went back normal after 6 month, thanks for the hot weather. I suggest to people should not give up, it can be a small problem. If you do not use the horn much, just pry it with a credit card. Replacing the Porsche airbag module can be very expansive

yeah i did that too initially..... until it suddenly re-appeared at night on and basically annoyed everyone within earshot until I turned off the engine and figured out what fuse to pull out (that required a few tries)...

Just reminded me that I can't remember EVER using the horn. I wonder if it even works.

Okay. There's a Porsche service instruction for this problem, SY905049 which also references SY3215. "Eliminating symptoms in body interior: Reworking actuator for horn (Button for horn sticks when actuated / SY3215)" I've tried to find these service instructions using Google, Startpage, and Duck Duck with no results. Our friendly service advisor gave me a paper copy. Anyhow, the remedy is to replace the two springs behind the airbag module with stronger springs Porsche P/N 9P1-419-357 - about $10 apiece. Also the Instruction requires lubing the four grooves that engage the four guide rails in the steering wheel hub with a special "Krytox" grease. Previous advice to make sure the airbag wires are properly tucked out of the way when reinstalling the airbag module is also important. I solved the problem when my horn wouldn't stop blowing with my special wheel center cap removal tools that I keep stowed under the edge of my driver side floor mat -- two of the larger heavy gauge paper clips with one leg straightened and with the tips about 3/8" bent over to make a right-angle shaped hook. Use the two hooks to pop the airbag / horn button out to its normal position. It's at least a temporary fix before some irate SuperTrumper takes a tire iron to your car when your horn won't stop blowing. I hope this is helpful.