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Bleeding the clutch hydro line is easier if you use a Mity-Vac (hand-held vacuum pump gizmo) -- takes only a couple of minutes and will eliminate that as a possible source of your problem. But if you've just got air in the line, the problem will be that the clutch won't RELEASE; your problem is that it won't ENGAGE. So...
1) First make sure the freewheel is locked -- little T-handle under the dash if yours is still as stock. Pull it back when car is stopped to lock out freewheel. If T-handle is missing or you're not sure, look at the crescent-shaped nylon lever on top of the transaxle -- this controls the freewheel and should be all the way back to lock it.
If car will go when freewheel is locked, but NOT when it's unlocked, then your problem is with the freewheel rather than the clutch or transaxle. You can just keep driving it with the freewheel locked until you want to get around to fixing it, as long as it doesn't make any noises and as long as you're not seeing anything sparkly when you drain the transaxle oil. (Sparkly bits mean the freewheel hub has shattered and hunks of it are getting ground up by the gears; not good.)
2) If locking the freewheel doesn't help, we'll have to get systematic about this. Fold back the little rubber condom that covers the joint between the clutch slave cylinder and the transaxle; watch clutch lever inside as Dad steps on the clutch pedal. Does it move? If not, something may have gone wrong in one of your rebuilds of the master or slave cylinder; you'll need to go back and recheck those.
3) If the lever moves, at least you know the hydraulics are working the clutch. Now the question is why it doesn't hook up. First check the free play adjustment (screw on bell housing opposite of slave cylinder; it's got a lock nut on it.) You should have enough free play to be able to press the clutch lever forward about 4mm. (Spring is stiff but you should be able to do it with finger pressure.) Screw the adjuster in farther to make more free play; screw it out to make less. Remember to tighten the lock nut when you're done!
This could be your problem area, since you've just had the slave cylinder off to rebuild it. Sometimes you have to shim the slave cylinder with washers if you can't get the right amount of freeplay with the adjuster; if the slave cylinder is too close to the clutch lever, it'll press on the lever ALL the time, not just when you step on the pedal, and that'll keep the clutch from engaging.
4) If lever is moving OK, you've gotta see if the clutch disk is hooking up. With the freewheel locked, put the car in gear and try to push it; does it resist? If it does, then at least the clutch is locking up some. Since you got the car to run in reverse, I'd guess that it's working at least a bit. If it ISN'T hooking up, you've got to pull out the driveline to see why; problems could include clutch disk ruined by oil leak (fairly common for front shaft seal on transaxle to fail, causing it to puke oil onto clutch) or just plain worn out too far.
4) If clutch locks up but car won't go, the problem might be with your gear selector -- you THINK you're in gear but actually you're in neutral all the time. The fact that you could drive the car in reverse makes me think the clutch may not be the problem, so it could be this instead. Shift linkage on a 96 is adjusted by moving the steering column, but I don't remember exactly how to zero it in; SOMEBODY on this board will know, though (Andy?) so chime in.
Anyway, those are some places to start. I can't see any way the throwout bearing would be involved; again, if it had worn down to a nubbin, the problem would be that the clutch wouldn't engage rather than that it wouldn't release.
posted by 204.76.11...
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