Whelen HWLRB13 User Manual

®

ENGINEERING COMPANY INC.

CAUTION

Loud siren noise can cause
hearing damage and/or loss.

Refer to OSHA Section 1910.95 prior
to putting ANY siren into service!

Wear

Protection!

ACTIVATION OF THIS
SIREN MAY DAMAGE
UNPROTECTED EARS!

51 Winthrop Road
Chester, Connecticut 06412-0684
Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
Internet: www.whelen.com
Sales e-mail: [e-mail]

Siren Speaker Mounting Bracket

Model HWLRB13 & HWLRB13K

2011 - 2012 Ford Explorer

Installation Guide:

Howler™/SA315

Canadian Sales e-mail: [e-mail]
Customer Service e-mail: [e-mail]

DANGER! Sirens produce extremely loud emergency warning tones! Exposure to these tones without

proper and adequate hearing protection, could cause ear damage and/or hearing loss! The Occupational Safety &
Health Administration (www.osha.gov) provides information necessary to determine safe exposure times in
Occupational Noise Exposure Section 1910.95. Until you have determined the safe exposure times for your
specific application, operators and anyone else in the immediate vicinity should be required to wear an approved
hearing protection device. FAILURE TO FOLLOW THIS RECOMMENDATION COULD CAUSE HEARING LOSS!

Safety First

This document provides all the necessary information to allow your Whelen product to be properly and safely installed.
Before beginning the installation and/or operation of your new product, the installation technician and operator must
read this manual completely. Important information is contained herein that could prevent serious injury or damage.

• Proper installation of this product requires the installer to have a good understanding of automotive electronics,
systems and procedures.

• Failure to use specified installation parts and/or hardware will void the product warranty!

• If mounting this product requires drilling holes, the installer MUST be sure that no vehicle components or other
vital parts could be damaged by the drilling process. Check both sides of the mounting surface before drilling
begins. Also de-burr any holes and remove any metal shards or remnants. Install grommets into all wire
passage holes.

• If this manual states that this product may be mounted with suction cups, magnets, tape or Velcro®, clean the
mounting surface with a 50/50 mix of isopropyl alcohol and water and dry thoroughly.

• Do not install this product or route any wires in the deployment area of your air bag. Equipment mounted or
located in the air bag deployment area will damage or reduce the effectiveness of the air bag, or become a
projectile that could cause serious personal injury or death. Refer to your vehicle owner’s manual for the air bag
deployment area. The User/Installer assumes full responsibility to determine proper mounting location, based
on providing ultimate safety to all passengers inside the vehicle.

• For this product to operate at optimum efficiency, a good electrical connection to chassis ground must be
made. The recommended procedure requires the product ground wire to be connected directly to the NEGATIVE
(-) battery post.

• If this product uses a remote device to activate or control this product, make sure this control is located in an
area that allows both the vehicle and the control to be operated safely in any driving condition. DO NOT
ATTEMPT TO ACTIVATE OR CONTROL THIS DEVICE IN A HAZARDOUS DRIVING SITUATION.

• It is recommended that these instructions be stored in a safe place and
referred to when performing maintenance and/or reinstallation of this
product.

• FAILURE TO FOLLOW THESE SAFETY PRECAUTIONS AND
INSTRUCTIONS COULD RESULT IN DAMAGE TO THE PRODUCT OR
VEHICLE AND/OR SERIOUS INJURY TO YOU AND YOUR PASSENGERS!

Automotive: Sirens/Switches

For warranty information regarding this product, visit www.whelen.com/warranty

©2011 Whelen Engineering Company Inc.
Form No.14497A (071812)

Page 1

HOWLER SIREN

SPEAKER

MAIN
SUPPORT

Fig. 3

5/16 X 1" HEX HD SHEET
METAL SCREW (QTY 4)

VEHICLE

FRAME

Main

Support

Lower
Clamp
Support

3/8-16

ELASTIC STOP NUT

(QTY 2)

3/8" FLAT WASHER

(QTY 4)

3/8-16X4"
HEX HD BOLT
(QTY 2)

5/16 - 18 X 1
HEX HD SS
BOLT (QTY 2)

5/16 - 18
ELASTIC
STOP NUT
(QTY 2)

5/16 FLAT
WASHER
(QTY 2)

Lower Clamp Support
to Main Support

3/8" FLAT
WASHER
(QTY4)

SA315 / Rear View

wire
exit &
drain
hole

A

B

A A

IMPORTANT: For drainage purposes, the

speaker must be oriented so that the wire
passage hole is in the “6 o’clock” position
(closest to the road). This is the drain hole
for the siren. Improper mounting will result in
premature driver failure and void the product warranty.

The SA315 siren speaker mounting kit comes with
three 1/4-20 X 1-1/2 mounting bolts. The longer bolts
are necessary to go through the mounting bracket,
the siren housing and into the siren driver.
The long bolts (“A”) will be used in 3 of the 4
mounting holes securing the siren driver to the
speaker housing.
Your speaker is shipped with two
1/4-20 X 1-1/4 short bolts installed.
A short bolt (“B”) be used in
the hole that go
through the bracket so
that it will properly
secure the driver
to the housing.
If you need to
remove all 4
bolts at once,
be sure to hold
the driver
securely in
place.

must

does not

1/4" SPLIT
LOCKWASHER

1/4" SPLIT
LOCKWASHER
(QTY 4)

1/4 - 20 X 1-1/4"
HEX HEAD SCREW
(QTY 1)

SA315 SIREN
SPEAKER

MAIN
SUPPORT

1/4 - 20 X 1-1/2"

HEX HEAD SCREW

(QTY 3)

Fig. 2

Bracket/Speaker Assembly / Lower bracket:

This bracket mounts to the vehicle frame. Following the vehicle manufacturers
instructions, remove the driver side front quarter panel to access the frame.

Mounting the SA315 to the Main Support:

NOTE: If your Explorer comes equipped with an SA315 speaker mounted
to the vehicle, remove the speaker and its bracket. Secure the SA315 siren

speaker to the main support (Fig. 2).

siren. While the low-frequency tones are better able to penetrate other vehicles,
thus alerting drivers to the presence of the responding emergency vehicle, these
tones may also penetrate into the responding vehicle itself. This could potentially
expose the operator to increased noise levels.

To help eliminate overexposure, the Howler™ siren has been designed with a
built-in timing circuit. The Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA)
(www.osha.gov) provides information necessary to determine safe exposure
times in Noise and Hearing Conservation, Section 1910.95 (Occupational Noise
Exposure). Until you have determined the safe exposure times for your specific
application, this siren should be configured for the minimum operating time and
operators should be required to use an approved
hearing protection device. FAILURE TO
FOLLOW THIS RECOMMENDATION
COULD CAUSE HEARING LOSS!

Mounting: Secure the
Howler siren speaker to
the main support using the
supplied sheet metal
screws (Fig. 3). Mount the
speaker so the screened
vent holes are facing down
toward the road.

Mounting the Howler to the Main Support:

IMPORTANT! READ THESE WARNINGS BEFORE CONTINUING!

The Howler™ Supplemental Siren was designed for use in high-risk areas such
as an intersection. It is not intended to be, nor should be operated as a
replacement or alternative to the vehicle’s primary siren.

The low-frequency tones of the Howler™ demonstrate significantly different
audio characteristics as compared to those of a traditional higher-frequency

Mounting to Vehicle Frame:

Place the main support (with siren
speakers) onto the frame and
secure it to the vehicle by securing
the lower clamp support to the
main support. The two mounting
bolts will go through the frame. The
two round extensions protruding
from the lower clamp support and
main bracket will insert into the
hole in the frame (Fig. 4)

Extend the WHITE (positive) and
BLACK (negative) speaker wires
to your siren amplifier and refer to
the amplifiers instructions for
connections.

Page 2

Fig. 4