Your transmission's filter may be clogged, you may be low on Transmission Fluid, or the transmission may need repair or replacement. If the transmission was full of fluid, I would suggest a transmission flush, or replacing the transmission filter and fluid. If this doesn't help the transmission may actually be damaged and may need repair or replacement.
An automatic transmission can lock in a Honda for several reasons. The most common problem is with the shift solenoids. These parts allow the transmission to shift and when one is malfunctioning the gearbox may not go into gear.
If your gear shift is freezing it could be because your clutch is not longer working. If you have an automatic then your transmission may be slipping.
A bad transmission gear can cause your 1999 Nissan frontier to shift hard. Low transmission fluid can also cause the transmission to shift hard.
In automatic transmissions the second to third syncronizers always seem to go bad first, the syncronizers are worn, bad or gone. This is common in these transmissions. Also you might check your trans fluid level, sometimes a low level will cause the transmission not to shift correctly.
There are several causes that an automatic transmission will not want to shift into second gear. The two most common causes are transmission pump issues and trouble with the vacuum modulator.
Are you sure that it's third it's not shifting into, and not fourth? The transmission is designed to not permit shifts into fourth (overdrive) until the engine and transmission have warmed up a bit.
If your transmission is not shifting into third gear and overdrive it could be a parking pawl. This prevents the transmission from rotating.
Automatic Transmission. You can also get semi-automatics where the driver decides what gear to put the car in, but the gear changes are done by an automatic mechanism.
A seized up transmission can cause a Volkswagen Golf with an automatic transmission to not shift and racing RMPs after second. A worn gear can also prevent shifting.
Check
VERY CAREFULLY.
check the fluid level