89 Regal sounds like a lawn mower

[BadKIDZ]

I have a 1989 regal limited. I was driving home from work the other day and all of a sudden, the car start to sputter. It sounds like someone's old lawn mower and its very, very loud. No "check engine" light comes on and the car did not stall or cut off, although I though it might when I stopped at a red light. The car will start up fine, it just sound so darn loud and runs so bad, during idle and acceleration. There was a slight smell of gas. The plugs and wires are a year old. Any ideals would be greatly appreciated.