As can be seen in these pictures, the collar for the front doesn't fit over the top
of the strut cartridge retainer. The inside diameter of the collar is about
1.960 inches, while the outside diameter of the retainer is about 1.985 inches.
A quick turn on the bench grinder makes enough of a gap to fit the collar over
the retainer. Although you don't have to, I also hit up the retainer with the
wire wheel after grinding, to remove some of the roughness.
As
I mentioned earlier about the rears, grinding on the strut may void your
warranty, even though you won't be causing any damage to the strut cartridge or
hampering the structural integrity of the retainer.
The
picture to the left shows the order in which the collar and related pieces are
assembled on the strut.
There are 4 metal rings in the kit I got which have no apparent use. I assumed these were in the kit to help keep the bottom of the collar from being beaten up and bent or cracked, so I used one on each collar to fit between the collar bottom and the lower spring perch on the strut itself. It's not an exact fit, but it gets pretty well pressed into the right spot when in service.
There are 3 different-sized o-ring sets in the kit, which are used to keep the collar from moving on the strut. Some kits may have set screws (which would probably work better). The fronts use one of the thin (small cross-sectional diameter) each. I positioned it near the top, but it works its way down the cartridge as you push the collar on. The o-ring makes for a surprisingly secure fit of the collar for the fronts. Unfortunately, this isn't as true for the rears.
The picture to the right shows the (mostly) assembled front assembly, awaiting installation of the upper mount bearing. I lubricated the bearing with ball-bearing grease, although there are no balls or rollers in this bearing.
Don't forget to install the bump stop, which goes directly beneath the upper spring perch, or you'll wreck your new struts in short order! If your old ones are deteriorated (or missing!), go ahead and replace them. The bump stop serves to protect the piston rod from ramming into the bottom of the strut cartridge, and should only make full contact under adverse conditions (e.g. potholes, hitting a curb, etc). They may require trimming somewhat to allow for the shorter travel of the suspension, so you're not bottoming out the suspension in normal or even sporty driving. Trial and error will determine whether you need to trim them, but you should be safe in trimming 1/2" to 1" off the stock bump stops for every 1" you drop the car, depending on spring stiffness. Alternately, you can use shorter replacement bump stops. You should be able to find some replacements at your local parts store, in the form of a generic bump stop/boot combo. Monroe and other strut manufacturers make these, and they're usually of better quality (the bump stops, not the boots) than the stock ones. It's important that the stop fit snugly over the rod, so that it stays at the top and holds up the boot properly.
If your old dust boots are still in good shape, I would use them over the
ones that come in the new boot/bump stop package. They should fit in place over
most generic replacement bump stops.
Here's what
the assembled, installed assembly should look like. Although it's hard to tell,
I managed to stuff the stock boot inside the spring, over the aftermarket bump
stop at the top, and the threaded collar at the bottom.