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[Ken Juul]

Yes there are bushing in the shift linkage. Replacing them makes a huge difference. They are hard to get to. I did mine when I replaced the driveshaft. Not sure if you can get too them otherwise. The rear seal and the shift shaft are common leak areas. If you are going in, may want to consider replacing the seals at the same time. On the hard shift, I would check your trans fluid level, if it gets low the car is hard to shift. A worn clutch shouldn't make shifting hard. However if the slave/master cylinders are not giving you full actuation that would cause it. I would start by checking the level and bleeding the clutch system. See if that helps.