My three-year-old accidentally pushed a Nintendo Switch game cartridge into the disc slot of my Nintendo Wii. The cartridge appears to be lodged near the front, and the Wii no longer accepts discs. Pressing eject only makes a clicking sound. The console still works normally with USB Loader GX backups and digital channels. How can I safely remove the cartridge, and is the disc drive likely damaged?
3 Answers
The Wii is probably salvageable. The main risk is damage to the rollers or loading mechanism, especially if someone tries to insert a disc while the cartridge is still inside. A replacement Wii disc drive is also relatively inexpensive if the mechanism turns out to be damaged.
Unplug the Wii completely, then open the case using a teardown guide and access the disc-drive mechanism. Since the cartridge seems to be blocking discs almost immediately, it may be near the entrance and removable without replacing the whole drive. Don’t keep pressing eject while it’s jammed.
If you can clearly see the cartridge, you might be able to remove it very gently with tweezers after unplugging the console. Avoid forcing it or touching the drive’s internal parts, since that could bend the loading mechanism. If it’s deeper than expected or you’re not comfortable opening the Wii, an electronics repair shop is the safer option.
It appears to be sitting close to the front because a disc gets blocked almost immediately when I try to insert one.
The console still runs USB Loader GX backups and digital channels normally, so the problem seems limited to the physical disc drive.