I'm asking about my mom'* 96 SLE... who is currently being a big goof.

Problem: Car'* interior lights do not go off 75% of the time after taking the key out of the ignition, sometimes the headlights stay on too. Battery has been dying after even short drives, presumably because of this. Oh yeah, and the air conditioning and radio stays on too.

Stuff that is good to know about this car: A year ago, the ignition key broke in half. Long story. We lodged the tip of the key in the ignition and stuck in the "half key" and it would always start fine (it has for the past year).

My theory is, what if something is messed up with the placement of the key tip in the ignition and the car thinks it'* in accessory mode? Maybe that doesn't make any sense. But my mom is convinced that if she just buys a new battery everything will be fine. I sense it'* something else. Ideas?

Does the car have retained accessories? If so, it may not since you taking the key out of the ignition. When you open the door with the "half key" out, does the warning chime sound?

This is just a thought, because I dont have the retained accessories feature.

My ignition will sometimes jump to ACC mode when I set it to the OFF position. The radio will stay on, but the RAP will kill the interior lights after 10 minutes.

The partial key being lodged in the ignition SHOULD not be causing this issue, but I would recommend getting it fixed