desertrat

My 2007 developed a clunk in the front end when hitting bumps, which would normally be easy to diagnose. I do suspension work and understand the principles, along with brakes. I checked everything, including control arms and all mounts, and concluded that the struts were shot.
Struts are very easy to replace, and so I ordered a pair from Amazon. The problem went away for a short time, and the car began to pull to the left.
I contacted the seller, who replaced the struts. I installed them and did a 4-wheel alignment, and everything checked out OK for a while. The pull returned, and so did the front end noise.
Fed up with the BS, I went to AutoZone and bought a set of KYB gas struts. After a quick installation, the difference was night and day! The pull was gone, probably due to the correct caster, and no more noise. The next day I began a 2,600 mile road trip, and the car handled perfectly, as well as my Cadillac ATS. The HHR hasn't been this fun to drive since I bought it in 2009. No more noise and the caster must be correct, as it tracks perfectly straight. When I did the alignment the caster was within spec, but on the road it was a different story. I did not do an alignment after changing the struts, the road test told me it was spot on this time.
I will NEVER buy struts or shocks again on Amazon. Junk every time. Spend a little more and do it right, use a local parts dealer. I have an idea that the struts I bought were counterfeit junk, as they failed almost immediately both times.
Amazon is good for some things, but auto parts is a gamble. Be careful!
Note- I am NOT affiliated with KYB. There are other struts to choose from, I bought KYB due to previous experience with them on other American cars. It's your call as for what you buy. The junk struts had a KYB tag, but the quality was zero. Like I said earlier, they were probably counterfeit.

PulpFriction

Good move with KYB. Good quality, good value. Only one I trust. Better than OEM. Except for SS. That calls for OEM.

Don't blame Amazon. Well, OK, blame Amazon, cuz we all hate Amazon, but they don't make what they sell, and most of it can be bough elsewhere, too.

Also, you can buy KYB from Amazon.

Assuming you got "struts plus" loaded assemblies, complete with springs.

Hope you check everything while you were down there. In particular, bad lower control arm (LCA) rear bushing get missed all the time.

Do NOT assume your alignment is OK. First, make sure the LCA bushings are good. Then, do a "string test" if you must, but better, get it aligned. The only adjustment they can do is the tie rod ends, so it should be cheap. A local body shop charges me $65 and I get a nice printed report.

Oldblue

I’ve run KYB struts and shocks for years, they last and last.

donbrew

I didn't know that Amazon branded struts.
If you got Mevotech or some other "no-name" brand they are collision parts, just good enough to sell the car and let the next guy fix it.
I don't know exactly how struts could affect a pull. They are fixed points that all of the other parts attach to. If there is a pull it comes from the frame being bent (caster) the LCA being wonky (camber) or the toe being wrong. That is assuming all of the elements have the correct measurements, length etc not angles.

desertrat

I should have pointed out that the Amazon struts were KYB, but counterfeit, and sold by Amazon. They had to be to fail twice in such a short period of time. I didn't take a picture of them when removed, but I may have a picture of when I put them in. I will search my photos.

donbrew

I hear that some people clean and pack up their old parts and return to Amazon to get free parts. Nobody ever looks at Amazon returns, they sell them by the pallet to resellers.
Amazon does not "sell" anything they "provide logistical services from order to delivery". They do use the phrase "sold by" very loosely; yes they do take the money, they do warehouse, they do ship, they do guarantee. A vendor send X number of units to Amazon, Amazon distributes the units to its warehouses, after a unit is sold the vendor gets paid a portion of what Amazon got. Pretty much a consignment arrangement, but they just sell boxes containing stuff that other people gave them to sell.

PulpFriction

Holy cow! Counterfeit?!! That's stunning! The photos would be interesting, but I would be much more interested in a link to the counterfeit item. Should still be in your sales history, even if it's flagged "no longer available."

Yeah, guess we shouldn't be surprised what people will do out of economic desperation or greed.

OK, but don't stores do that stuff too? Sometimes technically not taking title to the goods until they're sold?

It seems you see three kinds of items: sold & shipped by Amazon, sold by XYZ Co. & shipped by Amazon, & sold & shipped by XYZ Co.

When I by from Amazon, I try to mostly buy stuff S&S by Amazon. But my fairly recently purchased KYB strut assemblies were cheaper from Rock Auto, even with shipping.

donbrew

If you don't check the "Prime" box in the search you get the sold by xyz stuff, it is people selling like on ebay, NOT covered by Amazon rules. Shipped by Amazon is a different level on the rate card. It depends on what they pay, what level of logistical support.

greg8453

You are dealing directly with China by dealing with Amazon.

desertrat

I have Amazon Prime, and the struts were sold by Amazon, not a retailer. The first set went bad very quickly, and were replaced by the same. These didn't last any longer, and I wasn't going to deal with a third bad set. So I bit the bullet and bought the SAME struts from Autozone and the results were great.
I had some problems with parts from Detroit Spring on Amazon with another car, those may have been fake, too. I will never buy suspension parts on Amazon again, I'll stick with a local store with a real person behind the counter.