With a full strut/spring replacement the total time for the entire job would of course be less. However, the entire disassembly and reassembly of the strut can be done inside where it's nice and warm. So the amount of time you would spend out in the cold is exactly the same either way. Also, the strut dis/reassembly is not a long or tough job. If you don't already have one, Autozone has a very nice loaner spring compressor that works great for our Aveo struts.