Ok well I went to a mechanic today and while I was there I asked him to give me his thoughts on the thudding and shuddering from my suspension and he too thinks it's the strut bearing plate or mounting plate or whatever it is.

I am going to attempt to fix this myself asap so my question is can I buy the bearing plate on it's own from repco or somewhere or do I have to buy the whole strut like a monroe quick strut or something? (I was quoted $201 each for the quick struts). Does anyone know how much it might cost for just the bearing plate alone if i can just get that?

Other question is do I have to pull the whole strut out to replace the plate, and if so do I need to have spring compressors or will it just fall out?

Yep you will need spring compressor for this to take the top off the struts. That part is the bearing plate.

Be careful, loaded springs are deadly if they suddenly come loose.

Super cheap and the like would carry the spring compressors. Not expensive. You will need 2.

After that, it's a 5 minute job to change the tops.

Bigger job getting the struts out and back in, but not a huge thing.

If the bottom plate is damaged, it's a replacement strut. Otherwise try Repco, but I always check genuine prices first. Sometimes it's a pleasant surprise. Like the genuine auto fluid at Denmac Mitsi here in Logan City is cheaper than the aftermarket stuff, for instance.

I just replaced the Strut bearing plates on my KJ. (Thanks Mal)
I think you can only buy them from Mitsubishi Genuine. For memory they were about $80ea.
There is a part number on this forum somewhere if you do a search.

I have decided to just go ahead and fork out the $200 each for two new Monroe Quick Struts for the fronts. That way I can put them in myself without compressing springs and I'll have all the components that are worn replaced in one go instead of just the bearing plate.

i replaced mine not so long ago.. the bearing plates sit on top of the strut, between the strut and the chassis, all you have to do is take the strut out and replace the bearing. you shouldnt have to touch the springs.
also pedders sell the plates much cheaper the mits

i replaced mine not so long ago.. the bearing plates sit on top of the strut, between the strut and the chassis, all you have to do is take the strut out and replace the bearing. you shouldnt have to touch the springs.
also pedders sell the plates much cheaper the mits

Please do not post what you know nothing of

The bearing plates are bolted directly to the strutt, you need to compress the spring to get the top off safely

DO NOT use super carp compressors, Nigel has seen the amount of pressure it takes to compress a std spring enough to safely remove.