I have an 06 350z GT that I love. I've had to take it to the dealer for some issues and it seems I am getting screwed. 850$ just to replace a ballast in my head light. My car was also vandalized by someone knocking my drivers side rearview mirror out when it was parked.

I had to leave in the dealer shop for over a week to replace. Well after I got the car back I notice that my clutch or something is more difficult to shift gears when the car starts up. Last night I couldnt even manage to put it in reverse when I first started my car.

I'm never taking it to this dealer again but I'm trying to figure out of if my clutch is going out or what? Like I said after a few minutes it seems to shift just fine. What gives?

Any help much obliged.

 

Check the hydraulics. Look for a leaking slave cylinder or master cylinder, and if you don't see that as an issue, bleed the system with fresh DOT 4 brake fluid.

Replacing a headlight ballast is maybe a 1-hour job, which involves pulling off the front bumper and the headlight assembly. Find yourself a nice YouTube vid and do it yourself. AFAIK, all you need is a 10mm socket wrench and a Phillips screwdriver.

 

If you are not mechanically inclined, id search for another shop.
if you got the time and tool like dcains said, youtube it. I've taken my headlights all completely apart and put back together.
same with the clutch problem.. start with the fluids.. visually inspect master and slave, replace if needed. last thing you wanna do is replace and clutch and find out it was just the slave or master.

 

flush and fill the fluid.... i think you failed the class, troubleshooting 101

 

If you think your clutch is on the way out, an easy way to diagnose is to have it in a high gear going relatively slow. If you punch it and the revs climb, but it doesn't respond with acceleration like it should, then the clutch is probably toast.

If it's hard to shift at start, it sounds like a fluid issue like others have said - either hydraulic or tranny.

 

No way it's the clutch. It's absolutely an issue with the hydraulic elease mechanism, with an outside chance the oil is low in the gearbox. It's probably due for a fluid flush, and a gearbox oil change, anyway, so do both.

DOT4 brake fluid in the hydraulics, and OEM Nissan gearbox oil, or Redline MT85 in the gearbox.