Besides the issues mentioned by walkman, 10 to 1 CR pistons are originally used in helicopter engines. Most of those only have 1000 hour TBOs, rather than the 2000 hour TBO of a 150 or 160 HP O-320. Those 10 to 1 pistons will create more heat in the cylinder heads, which reduces the fatigue life of the aluminum head of each cylinder. You pay for that extra power with reduced cylinder life. Listers who are using 10 to 1 CR pistons can comment more authoritatively on actual cylinder life in an RV.
If that 185 hp rating is real, the owner probably had the cylinders "ported" when the compression upgrade was done.
Increased compression improves torque. That is the most likely explanation for the slightly better fuel economy in the 185 hp engine. It could also be due to a more aerodynamic airframe. [better build quality or the other plane is not rigged properly]
You also want to find out what the total hours are on each engine, as the crankcases tend to crack much more easily after 6,000 hours. Also find out if the engines are using the older narrow [Lycoming refers to them as "standard"] deck or the newer wide deck crankcases.
FYI, you can increase the 150 hp to nearly 160 hp by swapping the 7 to 1 pistons for the 8.5 to 1 pistons used in the 160 hp engines.
Charlie