OK, Kiwi, no chewing gum!

I've successfully upgraded the OS from a CD image, so I'm very pleased to know that the CD optics work & the OS is current. I expect I will be able to run from CD's just fine, which is less than ideal, but not horrible.

I've done multiple cleanings on my original DVD, and even done a disk repair, but I am unable to get my DVD to read or even be recognized by the Nav computer. The only other test I could do would be to find a known good DVD, and put it in to see if it can be read. I suspect the DVD laser is weak or dead, since that seems to be a pretty common issue in this forum.

So for now, I'm probably going to try to get my hands on a Navtech CD for California/Nevada, while I figure out if I'm feeling up to the challenge of replacing the old laser with a replacement. I'll do a little more reading on the threads that describe how to do that. It sounds a bit daunting, but I rip open PCs all the time, so maybe if I read over the threads a few more times it will seem less intimidating.

And by the way, my BMW dealer quoted me *$3,500* to repair this unit!!! Charged me $150 for "troubleshooting" and obviously never even tried to upgrade my OS! I wish I had found this forum first, that $150 would have almost bought me the replacement laser. I'm never going back to my dealer again.

So, another round of thanks to everyone on this forum who have generously shared their knowledge & experience on this.

- Chris