Sorry didn't reard it all so some of these will be mentioned but the short inserts i came across are aw11 mr2, ep71 starlet, N10 Pulsar (may have trouble finding them but kyb ones are still available and obviously mk1 golf as mentioned.
The EP starlet ones are just as short as mk1 golf ones too. Mazda rx7 (S1-3 i think) inserts are also a bit shorter although not as short as golfs also I believe kp60/61 starlets work too

The KYB's are a tight fit. I ended up sanding some of the paint off on the lower half of the insert so that it would slide in easy. If I had to force them in it would a mighty effort to get them back out. No sure about the MADDAT bumpsteer spacer would suit as I am under the impression they are for the larger 51mm Dia struts with the wider bolt spacing for the steering arm. I got my ones through B-projects.

If I was to do it again I think I would try and get the strut tube ID enlarged with a boring bar in a 4 jaw chuck lathe. .5 - 1mm would be more than enough.

I figured bump steer spacers would be needed, Maddat does 25mm ones. Where'd you pick up the 30mm ones from?

How did the KYB's fit in the strut tube? Did you hone out the strut a bit or take the paint off the inserts?

Yeah I've had lowered cars with the LCA's near horizontal and they were #OOPS# house through corners so I want to avoid that completely

cheers again

Forgot to mention, be aware that the MK1 Golf inserts are short [extended length] I also fitted some 30mm bump steer spacers to get some angle back into the LCA's. Without [spacers] the LCA sits near horizonal. That would be OK if it was a track setup with stiff springs and minimal suspension travel.

if you want to keep the spring captive then you are best to cut as much out as you can

best way to do it is figure out the extended length of the new insert. figure out the ride height its going o be at, then allow about an inch or 2 drop (so at ride height the shock is compressed an inch or 2 then

i cut about 100mm out of my stanza struts to run my corrona ones and the wheel only drops about an inch when the car is jacked up so you cant really go much higher than what it is

but yeah, i can think of many ways to figure out how much the should be spaced but its a bit hard explaining it without having a strut and shock and some pointing/explaining hands

From memory it cost ~$90 in total shipped to my door within 10 days. search for KYB GR-2 361005.

If you use a linear coil spring you will probably need a tender spring to hold the assembly captive. I ended up going with a pair of Single taper king springs. They are nice and comfy around town and firm up just right with sports driving. They are an exponential spring. At there current ride height the calculated spring rate is ~ 185lbs and at 2 inch bump that rate jumps up to ~270lbs

pic attached shows the comparison between to two different spring type. Both when istalled acheived the same ride hight.

Tuff-110, whats the specs on the gold inserts? can you get them in OZ? Are they shorter?

Kiri1, so you cut the full 100mm off and it's too much, I'm thinking 50mm is a good amount. I'd like to limit bottoming out and trying to keep the spring captive

Benny, how much did the KYB's end up costing shipped and how long was the wait? Who was it through?

Thanks again

yea you dont cut the thread off, that would just be a pain in the arse, just cut a section out, insert new shocks, check height, tack it, remove shocks, weld like a mad crab, linish welds, paint, re install shocks, ride low and dirty :)

its too easy guys, ive shortened 2 sets of struts now, did some in my sigma the other day, only took 20 mins each

estyre, that sounds like the way to go with re welding the old threaded strut tube top lower down. Was there any rough bits on the inside of the tube on the weld area that needed smoothing?

The question is now how much is a good amount to take off the strut height so I don't have problems with being too low with the coil overs full height? If I go the Golf inserts I'm thinking 50mm off the strut and run about a 50mm spacer inside

Thanks for the advice

i cut my 180b struts and it was easy with the help of some other members ,i cut mine and rewelded the thread back on ,this way i can still lower the car and dont have to worry about bottoming out ,and i thought about getting it rethreaded but the inside of the strut would need boring out and then trying to find someone with the right size tap and die set would also be a huge hassle

honing the strut would be the way to go ,as when i cut mine they were realy thick after the 25mm of thread inside the tube ,so there wouldnt be any problems with making the tube too thin