Poorly MK I Fiesta..any ideas?

My 1981 Fiesta with a 1.1 engine is starting to rattle like a bus when accelerating from standstill, sepcailly in 1st and 2nd gear, a real metallic rattling from the engine, also with very poor acceleration and smoke coming out the back after every engine rattle......this appears to only happen when in traffic and getting warm...not on normal runs.....any ideas?

Its also using a lot of oil at the moment but I dont think the smoke was black, more a dirty grey colour.......cant be head gasket as water levels remaining constant.....there is also a deep throbbing "roar" from the bottom of the engine at 55 mph and over....getting quite loud.....

me suspect the engine be knackered........

It gets worse.....just started to notice a VERY loud rumbling and vibration at 50 MPH plus, when the engine is under load or accelerating in any way..very loud....suspect the big end bearings, cant really be anything else........shame as its a low mileage engine, 35K genuine, but not worth spending any money on as I have a higher mileage but sweet as a nut spare engine in the garage...time for a swap over me thinks........

Is it misfiring at all? I wouldn't write it off just yet.

it misses a beat here and there, but not misfiring in the usual sense. When it "misses" a beat there is a corresponding puff of WHITE smoke from the exhaust and dribble of water.....not losing any water though at all from radiator.

But taking to my garage on Monday for a full examination.....definitely big end bearings though, or at least thats ONE of the problems......I know that noise anywhere.....

Must be the weather that's getting at the Fiesta's. Phylis is poorly as well. Don't know whats up with her but she just keeps cutting out. Usually in the most inconvienient places like half way across Abbeydale Road in rush hour, or right in the mouth of a junction where no one can get past.

Strangely enough, just filled up with Super Unleaded this morning and she is running like a dream again....this car HATES the dreaded basic unleaded, really does rattle like a rattlesnake.......dpesnt explain the excessive smoking though.....

Still got big end bearings to contend with though.....

My other one used to cut out all the time when it was cold, I thought it was the auto choke that was knackered but turned out to be a 'weak spark' emanating from the heart of the ignition system......

She's cutting out at anytime. No scrap that only when it's most inconvenient.

yes the bigends take the sums off and put new bigend shells in it give it a oil change and some zx1 from halfords £16 a bottle i think its good stuff:thumbsup: