battery then went dead, cleaned battery post, recharged battery. as soon as connection was made, the parking lights go on, even though the ignition and lights are turned off. this is my mothers car, she had it for some time and the last time it was serviced was 2 years ago for a transmission. other than that, nobody has touched the car since then and its been running fine. one thing to note, that the radio and clock was flashing before the battery died. thanks for any advice. glenn