mileage or compression?

[TRicker]

i'm looking at engines now, and im seeing lower mileage 3L's

for example i found for 375$ a motor with 48k miles and 180 compression across the board

then i see a motor with 98k miles for the same price with 210 compression across the board. could this be because of carbon buildup on the pistons, valves, and the head, or is the compression irrellavent as far as a junk yard motor goes?

im just worried i'm gonna get a "low mileage" engine that has low compression and ends up being worse than one with twice the mileage.

 

[Big Jim]

Unless the compression test was taken with the same compression gauge under the same conditions, the readings you quoted won't tell you much more than they are consistent (that's a good thing) and up in the generally known to be good range (also a good thing).

I would take the lower mileage one. The odds of it being serviceable for your needs are better.