Ford Repair: compression test, blown head gasket, piston rings

Question
I have recently purchased a 1985 for LTD. It has a 3.8 v6 and is rwd. the engine is has been running rough so I decided to do a compression check to determine if there was a blown head gasket. I'm stumped because each of the 6 cylinders are showing only 25-35 psi. I thank you in advance for your assistance in this matter


Answer
hey there. 25-35psi is very very low. im suprised the engine is running at all. you should be around 150 psi with no more that a 5 percent variance between cylinders, i would try to get a hold of another compression tested and try again. if all are still low then try dumping a little bit of oil in each cylinder and do the test again. if the readings come up then it is bad piston rings, if they dont then it is a valve or headgasket problem. let me know what you find
good luck
Chris P