If you do move it on, I would get out of old Fiesta (and rust) territory and buy a small car with a *galvanised shell* and a full 12 months MOT...
At the price range you are in these should be IMHO the only priorities apart from insurance group.
Problem is with your Fiesta the rust is eating it away and as you mention its coming through in the rear suspension turrets, it heading for welding as well as engine concerns. They are not long off rusting into the scrapyard at that age..........
Not all cars at that age are rusting though, a galvanised car would at least give you a basis on which to do some mechanical work without rust negating it. There may be some areas of local rust, but the whole car will not be riddled with it.
You could look at Pug 106, Fiat punto, Fiat cinquecento.... I`m posting this link so you can compare the the rust on a Fiat the same age as your Ford, Ok this guy has modded it, but the before shots show the shell is sound to work on and looks like its ready for another 10 years.
www.fiatforum.com/cinquecento-seicento/67827-while...l
Just bad luck you went for the Fiesta for some reason, but they seem to be rustbuckets at that age.
( Written with respect, I have been there myself a long time ago)
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Smoke -
Black - fuel problem.
Blue - engine problem - (an over filled with engine oil would do that, check the oil level, no more than MAX)
White/grey - Condensation that is normal, but if you're loosing anti-freeze/coolant then it's the Head Gasket problem.
Top end rattle - Engine oil contamination (long overdue services), oilways blocked, (engine flush may help)tappets (valves) need adjusting or are worn.
Bottom end rattle - bad news engine is on the way out, MAY be very lucky if the problem goes away after fresh engine oil changed, a friend of mine 2.0 Mondeo did that, but how long for ? repair is possible, but it's costly, do it yourself or replace engine, new car.
FACT - Cheap Mineral engine oil is a disaster unlet you're changing oil every month!
FACT - Mineral in Engine Oil or Auto Trans/Power Steering Fluid get caused alot of heat, oil leaks and 'black death' big time failure - nightmare!
FACT - 20W/50 no professional will advise this! Repair is the only option!
Motor Manufactors are now using/selling Semi-Synthetic & Fully-Synthetic Oils.
Ford have stated all their 90's vechines to use ACEA A1 S/S 5W/30, so using F/S or S/S 5W/40 or 10W/40 is fine.
S/S A1 for fuel efficient - 6,000 miles or 6 months
F/S A3 for better and longer protection - 12,000 miles or 12months
If doing alot of stop & starting, short trips and never fully warmed up would reduce the qualtiy of the oil life.
It's very common the 'Mayo' effects (water/condensation) in Mineral oil and some is burn off at correct heating temp, this is where oil contamination comes in and not affect in Synthetic much, but less white steam out of exhaust on cold mornings.
I am NOT a believer of 'little mechanics in a tin' but this got me thinking - few years ago a neighbour of my parent 's has a 2.0i Sierra failed MOT emission test result of blow-by.
He spend a weekend flushing the engine and cleaning the P.C.V. system, I was standing there and watching him, he said he brought some Full Synthetic engine oils and thinking it's will pass the test on the following Monday, I said nothing and let him be.
Tuesday evening my father phoned me and asked me if would I sort out the neighbour's car problem, because it's still failed the MOT emission tests only just by a bit, I said no, my partner is ill and I'm going away to see her and come back 'till she's better.
I thought nothing more of this.
On returned home, my answer machine's message was my father asking me to see their neighbour because he had got his car passed the MOT emission test on a first go!
I left a message and said I'll see him at the weekend, on that weekend I saw him with a big smile on his face and showed me some cans of 'Engine Restore Oil' - I thought what's this and said this won't help!
At the same time I just realised his car passed the MOT, he said he took the oil out, kept the oil filter and poured 3 cans in, then top up the same oil to correct level, drove miles and miles on the motorway to get the 'Restore' to work and booked the test on that Friday which it passed on the first go!
I couldn't make head or tail out of this until I did a research on the Internet, I brought some on e-bay to try it on a donor car of mine, I was going to replace with new pistons and maybe some valves if needed, but already I put in some 'High Mileages' engine oil, which failed the MOT emission tests just like the Sierra, same type of engine, but different body & name.
I did the same thing what my parent's neighbour did, but I revved the engine for quite a while, watching the exhaust smoke reducing bit by bit, then I revved really hard until it's didn't blow blue smoke anymore, not like what it was before, I thought you gonna be joking, nothing on earth can cure any worn bits in engine!
After a few hours later I phoned a friend to see if his mate would do an emission tests for me in the following morning before I start work - remember, I am a none believer in anything that a tin says it's will make your engine run better without the need of a mechanic repair! - well pink fluffy dice it's passed within the M.O.T. Emission Test on a first trial run!
Few years on, I've still got the car as a run-about for work , I abuse it, I drove it hard up on the hills, drove fast like a bat out of hell and it's still can cope with long journey of carry heavy weights.
I'm still baffle how can this keep on working without the need of repair or replacement!
I've still the boxes of pistons unused!
I'm not saying this is an cure all, but it's seems to be working!
'Engine Restore Oil' have been going on since in the 70's in the USA.
You try it and you decide!
Damn! that's unprofessional of me!
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I have another friend who works in all cars engine centre and said XADO does works - www.xado.co.uk/index.htm - but I've never tried it or I have any proof of it.
About Engine Restore Oil - I heard it's not compatible for racing engine oils - esters (plant esters = veggie oil basically) as result of curdling and frothing etc. changing viscosity of the oil's composition.
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Which is what they say on their website-if you want to use it with racing oils,tell them and they will make you some up-tho' why you would want to go racing with a clapped-out engine escapes me.
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Sorry-not the XADO site but the "engine restore oil" site.
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I am niot convinced these restore oils won't just block oil ways and water ways though. I am not trying anything like that until a last resort, i.e I need a new engine anyway. For now while the car is running perfectly fine I will just wait till the MOT if the engine lasts that long.
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