2nd gen front struts replacement questions

Hi,

I have a 2005 access cab trd off road that has about 100k miles

I bought it recently and despite of not having any problems with shocks,

I found a really good deal on craigslist that i couldnt pass, so now there are 4 complete shocks sitting in my porch waiting to be installed

The front struts are complete with springs so i dont need to worry about having them compressed, but my question is do i have to disconnect the sway bar or lower control arms to Put new ones in? Or should i be able to fit those without disconnecting any parts? Also the shocks i bought are from 2015, and mine is 05. Should they fit? Because 05 and 15 models have different part number for shocks but look the same.


Thanks!

 

Assuming they fit, I did not have to touch the sway bar. I did have to unbolt the lower ball joint knuckle to drop the LCA down far enough for removal/installation. There are some videos of different ways to skin that cat just search.

 

Thanks. I will post how it goes after i finish soon. Thanks for the help