Did my struts this weekend, after reading this and watching the 1A Auto youtube video, and it really helped, so wanted to give back.
I went with the Gabriel G57109 suspension strut assembly, currently $149 on Amazon and elsewhere. Go with the pre-loaded struts, and don't screw around with compressing the old spring and trying to get it to seat right in the top of the assembly, all while trying not to go blind when the thing decides to decompress on one side. You are already saving the money by doing the job yourself, so just get all new parts.
Since I was disconnecting the stabilizer arm connecting rod from the strut assembly, and there was exactly one more bolt holding the whole rod in, and the new ones cost $28/each, and the ACDelco ones had zerk fittings for grease, and I was already doing the alignment after this, I replaced those as well. ACDelco 45G20659.
First, let me say that the end result was way more satisfying than the average maintenance job that I've done. I change the brake fluid and power steering fluid because it's time, but you don't get the immediate satisfaction of not bottoming out and having that long up-down after a bump, like with this job. Old springs and struts just sneak up on you, so that at 65K, I just got used to a poor ride, and wish I had done this sooner.
So, on to the actual job. After you have the front end in the air, with both wheels off, hit the connecting rod nuts with a generous amount of PB Blaster. These will be the hardest nuts to remove, and the PB really helps.
Next, my 2012 has a rounded bottom to the windshield wiper arm mount, so that the puller didn't really work, as there was no good lip to attach the arms to. However, and this is what I was hoping for, you can just remove the few plastic clips that hold the cowl cover on, and then put a roll of paper towels, or similar, under the plastic, and have easy access to the three bolts at the top of the strut mount. There is a grill directly above the three bolts, and you will wonder why GM didn't put plastic clips on it, so that you could just access those bolts, but that's another rant. Remember to torque those bolts to 45 ft/lbs, after the wheels are back on the ground. Just snug them up before you lower the car.
After the job was done, and the car felt like new again, I noticed a rubbing/squeaking sound. A found a TSB that mentions that the top of the piston should be greased, and this is a known issue, particularly in cold weather. I grabbed a little synthetic brake grease and rubbed it around the very top of the piston, without having to remove the wheel, and today it was totally quiet. So, do this before you put the wheel back on, while you're in there.
You have to get an alignment after this, as with most other suspension work. I had purchased the lifetime alignment from Firestone, which was strategically priced at about twice the cost of a single alignment, and I was a little concerned about telling them that I had just put in new suspension parts, but it didn't impact the warranty. The alignment was only off slightly, and I couldn't feel it pull at all, but the toe was out -0.22 degrees on the left and -0.19 on the right. Don't think I would have ever known that without the alignment, but I've got new tires, so no sense wearing them out prematurely.
If you feel a bump long after you have passed it, or you are bottoming out more than you used to, do this job and you'll remember what the Traverse felt like when it was new.
