Strut Tower Tops

[Chris Phillips <chrphill@iei.net>]

VR6'ers,
I have recently had the H&R Sport/Bilstein Sport setup installed.  I had a
local shop do the work.  Today I noticed that the tops of the strut towers
seem to have a space beneath them.  The space is about 1/2" all around.
When I turn the wheels, the tops move forward and backwards.  Is this normal
(both the space and the movement)???  I never noticed it with the OEM
suspension, but that does not mean that it was not there.
Also, before the car warms up and whenever I go over a large bump (i.e.
speed bump), there is a noise coming from the front left strut/spring area.
It sounds like, umm, almost like a squeaky bed spring, but much lower in
tone.  Any ideas?

Thanks for the help,
Chris
'97 Jetta GLX VR6