I had a similar problem, i put a 3mm spacer under each of the VR/VS guard ones, to raise the struts up a wee bit so they don't hit the other guard bolts when shut. But as I said in my post just above yours, brand new wagon ones are WAY to stiff (a bonnet is much lighter than a wagon tailgate), so they make the bonnet warp and a bit hard to close (the latch rubs quite hard so you gotta manouever it a bit. I'd suggest taking those new wagon struts out asap before it permanently warps the bonnet, i left mine in for ages so now its warped a tad, meaning the latch isn't lined up as perfect as it was from the factory (still closes tho). try and get some struts the same length but a lot weaker, or go to the wrecker and get some used ones off a VL wagon (ones which have lost some of there strength so they aren't strong enough to hold up a tailgate, but should be fine to hold up a bonnet).

^ cheers man, ill give all of that a go Some original photos have not been recovered yet.

so can i confirm the boot strut should be 335mm long fully extended? I think i will only need one, cos my boot only JUST doesnt stay up. Also, is there anywhere easy to get the ball joints? Super cheap dont sell them and the wreckers are getting less of them, i look for them every time i go

^have you tried one of those self-serve wrecking yards?

yeah ill keep looking. I picked up a stack of VX/VT bonnet struts and a few of the ball joints. but none of the struts were strong enough for my heavy ass bonnet

i just bought some brand new vl tailgate struts from ebay for $30 http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI....m=230551534100 (http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=230551534100) will see how they go