Ok folks, let me share a quick info that might be useful to others like me who faced such an issue in 2022. TL;DR: just order a new one. Wii behavior: I insert a disk, it slides inside. Then Wii starts making chainsaw-like grinding sound and after a couple of seconds the disc is ejected with no damage at all. It wasn't the plastic circle with its metal plate (that holds the disk from the top of the drive), because otherwise the disk would start loading with grinding sound not stopping. I've spent a couple of hours tearing apart the drive and playing around, and got the reason - worn down claw of the plastic piece that regulates the position of a disk near the entrance. Cogs are trying to move this panel further, so a disk could be aligned properly. The connected cog overlaps the fault claw, the panel is pushed back by the spring until the next claw connects with the cog. Hence, making the grinding sound. Here's how it looks: Hope it helps, cheers