newbee with strut whoas
 

i have a 1999 Boxster I love this car I've done a lot of work on this car already thinking ok let's change just the springs and dampeners on the front end of the car using the project manual everything came out as the manual had said. when i go to slide the strut back into place the strut stops short about a 1/2 inch the ball joint that is almost directly under the strut stops it short from going down that last bit so i cannot push the sway bar linkage in. what the heck am I doing wrong here any help would be greatly appreciated:

What band and model # strut are you using?

I replaced my OEM shocks with KONI Active Sports all around, they did what you describe. I used some scotchbrite to take down the paint a bit, and then lubed the body and mount with a bit of silicone grease and they slid right in.