diagnosing bad strut....this is interesting!

No, it's not. How many miles on those struts. You may as well replace them since they're already out.

If you can push it in holding the entire thing in your hands, then they sound pretty worn.

If you have to put one end on the ground, and lean on it to make it go down, then it's good.

also, the strut seldom compresses through its whole range. 80-90% of the wear is in a very small range of action. that range wears, but the rest can still work.

ID, i really dont know of a reliable way to test them. i can tell you that when i did mine upon getting the car, they compressed very easy (by hand). i stuck new ones in (monroe sensa-tracs) and i noticed the car didnt wallow as much (if i swerved , it would really lean before. more symptomatic of bad springs, but the struts and shocks did help. it was bad. scary bad). but it didnt help as much as i had hoped with normal bumps. i wrote it off to crappy struts and that its a vert. and my other cars are set up to handle really well.

but the new struts were pretty tight. when i held the bottom in one hand and the piston in the other (better test for me. leaning on it doesnt tell much to me), it was much harder to compress. the old ones were clapped.

try slowly runnin the old ones through their range of motion. i say slowly, to see if you feel a spot where the resistance lessens (sign of a worn spot). thats the best test i know of. i think most of these cheaper struts are made to only last a couple years before performance is really diminished. think of how many times it compresses and rebounds.also, some seem ok when bench testing them, but once heated up (via temps and friction from use), they really take a poo.

when i talked to you before, i didnt think to ask if they are original or not (i assumed not). that is one super sweet ride, BTW, if i didnt mention it.
good luck. i will TTYL, bud.

Here is the easiest way to tell when a strut has gone bad and you don't even have to remove them... Simply bounce on the front fender over top the wheel. Struts should give but not excessively. I was able to bounce my worn strut with little effort while the other side I had to put my weight behind. Also, a worn strut will have some rebound bounce to it.. I know this is confusing but I don't know a good way to explain it without showing