the bushing is called pilot bushing, and yes it is for a manual, the input shaft goes it that. and i would get that out. they make a tool to remove them but if you have an old input shaft and a grease gun and a hammer you can get it out. pump the bushing full of grease ans stick the input shaft inside the hole and hit the shaft. just keep filling and hitting and it will eventually come out. may sound crazy but it works. the grease gets in behind the bushing and the impact of the hammer forces the grease out behind th bushing. and as for filling the TC i have never done that. i have always filled the trans with fluid before starting then getting it hot then top it off then o from park-L1 to make sure its going in gear. one thing i would check is your transmissions lines going from the radiator to the trans to see if they are kinked in any way of a split in one. the lines are under pressure due to the front pump. hopefully them few things will work. just for future references, if a vehicle wont pull itself like on a incline or about a 3 inch build up, normally its in the TC. to check that is take your TC out with the splines up and reach your finger inside and you should be able to turn the clutch as i call it ONE way. if it turns both ways the TC is bad. the clutch is a ONE-WAY clutch. that means if its turning both ways the TC is working against itself and wont supply any torque