Went to start our '91 F Festiva this morning and - nothing. Dead battery. I noticed the dome light was very weak, and of course no headlights. However before I disconnected the neg. battery cable in order to connect the battery charger I noticed a definite and steady clicking sound coming from somewhere around the passenger side of the engine compartment but can't pinpoint where it's coming from.
Here's the weird part. This noise disappears when the driver's door is open, and if I turn on the dome light to the stay 'on' position and then shut the door or even partially engage the door to be shut, the ticking sound stops. If i turn the dome light back to where it shuts off when the door is shut, the ticking resumes.
At this point I tested the battery and it has a little over 9 volts, so currently I have the charger on it. Meantime, does this action sound familiar to anyone?
tks, al