The 2002-2004 Freelanders all suffer from 'optimistic' Transmission Fluid change intervals. One look at the owners manual states that the Transmission Fluid's FIRST CHANGE is at 60kmiles. I always thought there was something fishy. First change at 10kmiles over the warranty?? A former LR mechanic who I met commented the following. He said that he saw Jatco Transmissions being ordered "by-the-truck-load" back in 2003-2005. Unfortunately, I was not one of the lucky few whose Jatco boxes failed before the 5 year-50kmile warranty. Yet my new Freelander always had a hard-shift from 3rd to 4th gear, and still does today, even with 4th and 5th gears splipping. You can have your Jatco Transmission repaired by a reputable shop as I may do soon. It may just be the solenoids or another simple cure. But if your car has not had the LRN-402 fluid changed yet... and your 1,2, and 3rd gears are shot, I would say you need a Tranmission job. Not only may this be bad, but the Freelander also has two other parts that also give trouble. One part is the Transfer case and the other the Viscous Coupling unit. If you have your LR repaired, the mechanic may also recommend changing one or both of these depending on their condition. Despite my numerous requests to have my Jatco box serviced at 30kmiles and almost every 5k beyond that, the dealer response was the same as the owners manual "Not necessary until you car reaches 60kmiles". Now I know why.. Good luck and hope this helps.
