AW11 Strut Rebuild

Hi All,
 
With the recent success i've had with the poly bushing install the balance of the stock suspension/shock is off kilter. I have no idea how old the existing struts and they are no obvious leaks or score marks on the shaft. So i'm looking to order a set of koni sports and eibach springs to improve handling but more importantly to refresh it.
 
From understanding and research i'm fairly confident in carrying out the process however for those of you who have replaced the front struts would you recommended purchasing new strut tops? As far as i know the fronts have a pressed in bearing that is near impossible to replace alone so the only option is purchase a whole new one. I believe rears dont have a bearing so there won't be any wear on them. In addition to the strut top would I require a new dust seal (sits between strut top and insulator) or anything else?
 
Cheers 
 

Theorist, great post!
Perhaps consider putting it, as well as your other post on the strut rebuild into PDF. and send it to:
Contributions for the 'Technical Information/ How to' section of this forum.

It's been in for over a year with no issues though I don't do many Ks in it. It got some resistance out of the steering and stopped a rattle in the front end.
Went ok at the tack day for about 10 minutes until the engine spat a conrod out the side of the block.
Peter

I will need to replace the block, crank, rods and pistons - basically the entire short motor. Budget doesn't allow much at the moment. I guess I will start with a good used engine.
Looking back the engine did feel weird and maybe down on power. I couldn't hear much with the helmet on. That is until it let go - then it sounded like a brick in the spin dryer.
Peter

In addition to Theorist helpful guide i've added did a couple of things different.
1) To find the spots welds on the strut top i use paint stripper on the underside, this exposed the spot welds which can be easily seen. This took the guess work out and i was only slightly off on one spot weld.
You should also try to drill drill closer to the centre of the bearing cap, as drilling to far out may create difficulties later on when bolting things up.

 
2) I sanded and sprayed the area where i applied paint stripper on the strut top.

 
3)This wasn't mention by Theorist but it should be noted that when purchasing your new bearing ask for a sealed type. The stock bearing is an open type which is utterly crap as you cannot clean or re-grease it easily. As you can see the bottom side is now protected from dirt.


Note: I already purchased the foam seal prior purchasing anything else so i used it anyways, but its not necessary if you have a sealed bearing.
 
4) When drilling out the spot welds i used a 6.5mm drill bit. I think you can get away with a 6mm but you need to be precise. I also added a spring washer to the mount hardware as they sit flush under the allen bolt and prevent the bolt from vibrating off. The allen bolt i got was a M6x20.