Electrical Nightmare

OK, here's my problem.....  And, it just started out of nowhere!!!!

When I turn my ignition of, my radio continues to play and my turn signal flasher "flashes" but both sound like less the max. power.

Now, when I turn on the windshield wipers, the heater fan, the headlights or the backup lights, the radio and/or turn signal stops..... Ugh....

I think I have looked everywhere, but I havn't a clue.

Oh yeah one more thing....  The voltage regulator clicks when I connect or disconnect the battery, and is warm to touch even with the key off.

The voltage regulator is new (I replaced it today after the problem started), and I replaced the battery, alternator and starter within the last 2 months.

Is it possible that the ignition switch went out, and there is power continuing to run through the system?

Well, I hope someone has experience an electrical nightmare and can help....\

Thanks

What vehicle is it, year, make, model?
For starters and I know this is really going to sound silly, but on some newer vehicles because of all the electrical system tie ins. A blown fuse can cause what you are discribing.
Believe it or not. Out of being burned a few times. I learned to check these first. before tearing into everything. I couldn't believe it my self the first time. An open circuit some where can also cause these symptems. Electricity is a traveler and will find any alternate circuit to run through just to get to the other end.  

Do you have volume control in the steering wheel? cause with the exeption of the fan control, if you have all that stuff in the column you might have some shorts in there from rubbing.

I would defentily check the fuses first like Normsride said, and would ring everything out (test for continuity) before ripping out the column.


Also you can check out circiuts one my one. First you can either turn the ignition "on" not running, and pull out fuse by fuse and listen for the Volt regulator to click or you can start with all the all the fuses out and put each one in one at a time.

If you put a fuse in lets say the head light circuit and the wipers start or the radio goes on you know you have a short somewhere.

Also that stuff can be caused by a bad ground. Try to think about any of the recent fixes you've done, maybe you had to take off a ground or move one, and it either never got reattached or even put under a screw and not tightened down.

My moms old mini van had some issues too. it use to flash the interior lights, interior seatbelt/door beep would go off ALL the time and even one time when my brother and I were on our way home from work during a huge down pour the automatic sliding door kept on opening. Eventually the ABS started acting up and failed when my lil sister was driving and she stuffed that pos into a tree. (she was fine)

Anyway sometimes the shorts are easy to track and spot, And other times you gotta learn to live with it unless you wanna rip the dash out  
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It may not be the fastest or prettiest, but i can pretend

just curious....    does the radio go off if you open and close the drivers door?????   i seem to recall that opening the door turns off the circuit that keeps the radio powered up until you get out..    

there was a TSB i think on this circuit..   i have had a few small size gm's come through the shop that we had to pull the fuse on the radio to get it to shut off..     but that shop was very limited on wiring diagrams..

that is a feature a lot of newer cars have... year ... make.. model.. like norm said..  and you will get a much better answer...