After market strut oil leakage
 

Has anyone had a problem with their aftermarket struts leaking oil? I had a 2" lift fitted to my Commander back in Feb 2008 and earlier this year my local service centre advised me of a leak in the L/H strut. I went back to the company that fitted them and they said they are now agents for Old Man Emu and told me I should replace the Bilsteins with the OME because they where better. Even though they had recommended the Bilsteins originally. When I said I wanted my very expensive German Bilsteins repaired and hopefully under warranty I was basically dismissed. I then resigned myself to the fact I’d have to chase up a repair myself. The only other option was to go back to my supplier and fitter on the other side of town and pay them for the removal of the faulty strut. Hire a replacement car for a week while they send the strut away for repair.
I then check out Bilsteins prices in the USA (nearly half price) but they where a different part number so this option fell through. Or do I buy 2 x OMEmu struts that are cheaper and made by Munroe Shocks in Australia. Are these a better brand than Bilstein????????
In the end I went direct to the major Bilstein distributor in Sydney, Sydney Shock Absorbers, they where more than helpful and are fixing the strut at a low rate and hopefully the next day once they receive my express post package. I removed the strut myself using instructions from the USA Commander Forum thread. The removal was very easily done!

I'll give you an update on the end result once the part comes back in the next 3 days

I'm just amazed how a 4x4 company will sing the praises of one brand then do an about face when they take on another agency and leave the once loyal customer to pay the price.

The Bilstien strut has been fixed. The problem was a leaking top seal only. It was either faulty or damaged by foreign matter such as sand, mud or dirt. ( I have no idea how that could happen as I only drive the Commander to church on Sundays) Sydney Shock Absorbers, the Australian distributor for Bilstiens were fantastic to deal with and have fixed the problem for free even though it was out of warranty and returned to me via overnight express courier. They did a full check on the shaft and dampening rate and the only problem was the shaft top seal.
Good old fashion customer service is still available, thank you Steve & Tony at Sydney Shock Absorbers.