96 Contour won't start

[lastzorro]

Hey Guys, My girlfriend has a 1996 Ford Contour and it won't turn over for her. She says that it makes a clicking noise everytime you try to turn it over. She also said something about a few of the gauges went crazy. I think it might either be the alernator or starter. Anyone have any ideas? Let me know, thanks

[beyondloadedSE]

Id say alternator. Her battery is probably very weak since is why the starter just ticks.

I leased a brand new focus a few years ago, and 2 weeks after having it, I was driving down the highway and everything in the car went dead. The guages just plummeted and went to zero. The car still ran while I was driving down the highway for a couple minutes, but then you could tell the engine was having a hard time, probably since the injectors werent firing and it eventually just rolled to a stop. Took it to the dealership and it was a bad alternator and consequently, it toasted the battery.