Smoking and loss of power

[Nicknacks]

Happy New Year to everyone.

I own a Nissan FB14 Sunny with a GA15DE engine. Recently I am experiencing a problem where when I am ascending hills at a moderate speed the vehicle will suddenly loose power and a tapping sound will be heard, followed by white smoke from the exhaust. If I release the acceleration and accelerate back the problem stops. Surprisingly it does not happen every time.

Can someone give some advise on what could be the problem.?

I will appreciate any assistance

I always depend on the valuable advise provided in this forum.

[Dave]

Tapping sounds like the engine is pinging and white smoke is typically coolant being burned. Failed head gasket maybe. Is there oil in the coolant or water in the oil?

[adnj]

Intermittent loss of power and pinging could also be a faulty engine sensor or sensor connection. An OBD readout should tell you if that is the case.

[Nicknacks]

Thanks for your responses.. @Dave I have been checking for that but the oil is clean with no coolant mix and the coolant level remains the same... @ adnj I will get a scan done on vehicle.

[saball15]

One other source might be a faulty catalytic converter.