Most of the times when you have low compression on one cylinder it's an indication that the head gasket is blown. If more than one cylinder has low compression and is hard to start the you most deffinatly have a blown head gasket
A "Bad cylinder" or "dead cylinder" is a cylinder with Low compression psi. Symptoms: rough running low power can cause high oil consumption
If it is causing the cylinder to misfire, yes.
how to fix a cylinder #1 has low compression diagnose on 2.9 chvy colorado 2007
You have to take out the cylinder, how low is it, what is the difference
Low compression will not cause an engine to not run. It may not run efficiently but it will run. Low compression on all cylinders is caused by wear, and can only be fixed by overhauling the engine. Low compression on just one cylinder can be a blown head gasket, burnt valve, or a broken ring on that cylinder. I also depends on what you mean by "below average". An engine with lots of miles may very well have a compression reading that is below the factory specifications and not be cause for alarm. It depends on how much below specs that compression is. In any case, the only fix is to open the engine up.
sounds like your engine needs a valve job worn piston rings would also cause low compression ,but not cause the backfireing
Loss of Power
Low compression in one cylinder can mean several things. The valves or piston rings may need to be replaced. There may be a crack on the engine, or the head gasket may have blown. The engine should be diagnosed properly to see what exactly is the cause of the low compression.
A bad lifter, worn piston rings/cylinder walls, carbon build up, bent push rod, and a worn cam lobe. A burned valve can also cause low compression.
It should be a high of 185 and a low of 140
maybe you need a new head gasket?
No, quite the opposite- the idea of gaskets is to ensure that an engine gives HIGH compression. If your car has just had a cylinder head gasket change and you are STILL getting low compression, then this suggests that the problem lies with the cylinder head itself- it may be cracked. Unfortunately there's no effective repair for this, the only solution is to get a new cylinder head I'm afraid.