# Can the pitch of a car horn be changed or manipulated? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 26, 2004, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-the-pitch-of-a-car-horn-be-changed-or-manipulated/266113 "2004-09-26T02:28:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2004, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-the-pitch-of-a-car-horn-be-changed-or-manipulated/266113/21 "2004-09-26T17:31:10Z")
**Standard Horn Tone Rule? No.** For a long time, all General Motors horns were made at Delco-Remy, here in Anderson. The Cadillacs had a diminished 7th chord with 4 horns, the mid-priced cars had 3, and the cheapest had 2. The tide of little imported cars in the early 1960’s had much **higher tones,** though. **Wendy Mae Chambers** claims to have made the first car horn organ in 1983. She’s wrong. Clark Sloan, a Delco-Remy engineer, had one in his car at least 15 years earlier. Now, of course, you can get one at J.C. Whitney online. They also sell horns that sound like freight trains, quartets of little air horns that play “La Cucaracha,” and the ever popular Aa-Ooga horns. ---
**Author:** ![z\_z\_z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b2d939/32.png) [@z\_z\_z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/z_z_z)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2004, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-the-pitch-of-a-car-horn-be-changed-or-manipulated/266113/22 "2004-09-26T21:35:06Z")
> [@W. Fikere Tomba](#): > > According to my ear-training teacher, the hi-lo siren on French ambulances is a tritone. I haven’t heard one since then, so I don’t know if he’s right. I have no idea about french ambulances, but the classic “Martinshorn” - sound (high / low) that is used by many European police/fire department/ambulance cars is a 4th, not a tritone. You can listen to it here (a small (35 kb) mp3) [http://www.thw-hannover.de/inh/hilfe/ausbildung/soft/martin56.mp3](http://www.thw-hannover.de/inh/hilfe/ausbildung/soft/martin56.mp3) . ---
**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2004, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-the-pitch-of-a-car-horn-be-changed-or-manipulated/266113/23 "2004-09-26T22:14:55Z")
This thread reminds me of a dream I once had. Not too long ago, I drove an 87’ Chevy Nova hatchback. It was a rusty piece of crap with a wimpy little beep-beep horn. I fantasized about getting one of those big air horns that locomotives use and bolting it to the roof of the Nova. Then I’d go cruising, find someone who was driving while talking on their cellphone (and was thus oblivious to everything around them), and them pull up behind him/her and let 'er rip. BRAAAAAAAAAAAAP!!! Maybe I could get kickback from the underwear companies. ---
**Author:** ![Tripler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripler/32/21807_2.png) [@Tripler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tripler)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2004, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-the-pitch-of-a-car-horn-be-changed-or-manipulated/266113/24 "2004-09-26T23:23:10Z")
> [@Gary T](#): > > . . . the idea of an inspector determining the actual pitch of the horn doesn’t ring true. What’s he supposed to do – carry a piano with him? :dubious: Well, you know the old addage: You can tune a piano, but you can’t tune a fish. Just think about it for a little while. Tripler Hell, maybe you _can_ tune a car horn though . . . ---
**Author:** ![t-keela](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a3d4f5/32.png) [@t-keela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/t-keela)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2004, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-the-pitch-of-a-car-horn-be-changed-or-manipulated/266113/25 "2004-09-26T23:43:45Z")
> [@DougC](#): > > I heard once that all US car horns had to be in the same note never been in a traffic jam? That doesn’t change the possiblity that you did hear some make this claim. Sorry Doug, I know a few people that do inspections…that ain’t part of the test. 😉 Matter of fact…none of the cars or trucks I’ve owned recently had horns that were the same. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2004, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-the-pitch-of-a-car-horn-be-changed-or-manipulated/266113/26 "2004-09-26T23:57:09Z")
> [@Diceman](#): > > This thread reminds me of a dream I once had. > > Not too long ago, I drove an 87’ Chevy Nova hatchback. It was a rusty piece of crap with a wimpy little beep-beep horn. I fantasized about getting one of those big air horns that locomotives use and bolting it to the roof of the Nova. Then I’d go cruising, find someone who was driving while talking on their cellphone (and was thus oblivious to everything around them), and them pull up behind him/her and let 'er rip. > BRAAAAAAAAAAAAP!!! > Maybe I could get kickback from the underwear companies. I too drove an '87 Nova hatchback until about 3 years ago. If the body wasn’t falling apart from rust, I’d still have it. With a fresh tine-up I got 50mpg highway, and about 35 in town. But I DID buy a new horn for it because the original was so lame. Not a locomotive hown, just something a little huskier and manlier. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2004, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-the-pitch-of-a-car-horn-be-changed-or-manipulated/266113/27 "2004-09-27T05:07:35Z")
On my first car, a 1959 Pontiac Bonneville, I cobbled together all the horns a Cadillac had. Then, while prowling a scrapyard (auto recycling center, now,) I found an old tractor trailer (semi) truck with a huge air horn on the roof. I took it off and bought it. The plate on the back says STROMBOS, the world’s strongest signal. I endeavored to mount the thing behind the grille of the Pontiac. I had a pressure tank in the trunk and a chain pull valve under the dash. The monster sounded just like a train. I could hwonk the horn a quarter mile from my girlfriend’s dorm, and she’d be waiting at the door when I got there. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-the-pitch-of-a-car-horn-be-changed-or-manipulated/266113.md?page=1)