almost sounds like the ecu is going bad..

the fluttering/ticking you mentioned might be the ecu turning on and off trying to establish a good connection with your car (ok thats the best way i could describe it).

On my 1g, I had the same problem. Every once in a while it wouldnt start right up, I would have to try starting it, and then wait a while, and it would start right up. Sometimes it would even start cranking and then stop and nothing.

i dont know if its the ecu for sure, but it sounds like that.