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piston slap

British  

noun

  1. the characteristic sound of a seriously worn piston in a cylinder (usually of the engine of a motor car)

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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The airport, baggage, the ancient taxi with the piston slap, and at last the dark, familiar street.

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