Originally Posted by vnoronha

I have found the struts cheapest at the dealer!!!

I was able to replace a front set easily with very few tools. There are two (19mm?) bolts attached to the backing plate and another nut on the shock tower under the hood. The rod needs a 7 or 8mm allen key depending on manufacturer.

What I did was:
1. Jack up the car and place supports under body parts, or lifting pads.
2. Remove the wheel.
3. Loosen the bolts at the lower end of the strut to make later removal easier
4. Jack up under the lower ball joint just enough to support it. While holding the shaft with an allen wrench, remove the top nut from the shock tower.
5. Remove the two lower bolts, then slide the strut out.
6. Remove the orange buffer and transfer it to the new strut. If it is damaged it should be replaced.
7. Install the new strut aligning the shaft through the hole, screw in the top nut and washers just a few threads, then screw in the lower bolts.
8. Hold the cup washers and tighten the top nut, holding the shaft with the allen key, then tighten the lower bolts to the correct torque.
9. Remove the jack and refit the wheel
Repeat for the other side.

It is important that you use the jack under the lower ball joint while replacing the struts or the coil spring could pop out with disastrous results!!! You are using the weight of the car to compress the coils, and it works well.

Shouldn't take more than 45 minutes a side, once you have your parts, tools and workspace ready.