Had anyone else had this issue?

My horn just started going off. I came out side and could smell the electronics cooking. By the time I grabbed my 8mm to disconnect the battery, the horn had changed tones and then warbled...and then "poof"...puff of smoke appeared on the drives side and the horn turned off.

Everything else seems to be ok but has anyone even ever heard of this happening?

 

Yes , I have , and one of maybe 3 things caused it ;

Sometimes , the relay will short and provide power all the time to the horn . The horn has a "duty cycle" , in that it can't be energized continuously or it will burn out . Usually the relay shorts during horn use , so if you weren't using it at the time , it very well could be reason two ;

In very hot weather , the switch(es) in the steering wheel can become so hot that they get all rubbery and distort a bit , just enough to make contact and sound the horn continuously , or , lastly ;

If any kinds of aftermarket alarm system is in use , and tied into the horn , both the alarm unit and it's wiring should be examined for proper operation .

I'll bet one of the three reasons above are why your horn did that . Now all you gotta do is figure out which of the three it was , and fix it before you replace the burned out horn .

Good Luck with it ....

 

I had an after market alarm, one of those old Viper units that would yell at you "This car is protected by Viper, stand back!" But I removed it years ago. It was hot, so the second part is plausible and being 30 years old, so is the first! lol...

Anyway, thank you very much for the input and ideas to look into!