I've had the same problem. I rigged a setup where I used a jack connected to the strut to jack the strut up into the tower. You have to rig something up to do this carefully but I did it and it worked fine. The reason I had this problem is because the new upper strut mounts/are much thicker than the old. The care rides much much better with these thicker mounts and new struts...

Bob

An ounce of prevention provides a pound of cure!