my ranger doesnt have any power took it to the shop the man told me my number 4 cylinder only had 63 compression. is this a serious issue where i cant drive it or can i keep driving it

thanks

 

could be a bad headgasket

 

if the headgasket was bad would i have low compression on more than 1 cylinder

 

not necessarily.

Do you have any bubbles coming up in your coolant overflow tank while its running?
Any white smoke from the tailpipe when you start it up?
Does the oil smell like coolant?

If you say yes to any of those I'd suspect the headgasket.

 

ok if i have none what would be next

 

cooling system pressure test. was your compression test a "wet" or "dry" test?

 

Just went through this scenario on my 2001 with 126,000 miles. My low compression was caused by the exhaust valve and seat not sealing. Found this problem on 4 of 6 ex.valves. This is a BIG problem on these engines, and Ford should be ashamed for letting this problem go as long as they did. Found a very fair shop through ebay that sells rebuilt heads with special exhaust valve seats. PM me for more info.

 

go to a speed shop / machine shop talk to the guys tell them about the heads valve seat problem, get new seats new ss valves and do a porting job on the exhaust side for better flow. if they know there stuff they know to balance the uneven flow in these heads the intake side is good enough for 3.0s, but exhaust is not. Just port match the intake manifold ports to head ports- put 1.8 rockers and a sct tunner and you'll be happy.....I am very happy with that my self. good luck