Sorry that I am late to the chat I was off this past week. I would agree with many of the post above that the noise is not coming from the strut rod. I would definitely re check all your suspensions mounting points. To me it sounds more shock like. I would check that the top pin on the front shocks is centered in the bushings and not making contact with the edge of the hole it passes through on the vehicle. Once verified would wd40 each one of the components on your car one at a time until the noise changes or goes away. Keep us updated.
James From
PST