Pontiac Repair: 2001 GrandAm, turn signal switch, throttle plate

Question
Hi, My name is Josh and my Grandam(2.4 L V6, i believe) has a few problems. 1. I am getting a weird ticking noise coming from in my dash. It doesn't happen all the time just appears to be random. Was told that the relay sensor has some kind of corrosion built around the connection that causes it to do that. 2. My car has a really low idle. It idles at around 550 to 600 after about 5 minutes of driving the vehicle. It cause the vehicle to shake when im sitting at red lights. 3. My key wont always turn when i put it in the slot, sometimes i have apply quite abit of pressure the get it to turn over fully. 4. Sometimes, after I've gotten out of the vehicle, it will honk and flash the headlights by itself , like i was turning on a security system, although i don't have one. As you can see, the problems are starting to mount. And for a guy who works at a convience store thats not good. Where should I start?

Answer
Hey Josh:

#1 the ticking noise is from the 4 way flasher module. The turn signal switch is bad keeping the relay in the 4 way to keep clicking. #2 you may want to clean the throttle plate it is more than likely carboned up and gummed up that could cause you idle issue It's the easies thing to try. #3 you have either a key that is slightly bent or the ignition lock cylinder is going bad. #4 You have got me on the honk and flash maybe you have a button on your key fob that is getting "too easy" to push and when you have your key in your hand or put them in your pocket it's arming the security system???? Good luck :)