High speed CD burning doesn't work

I noticed that my trusty old CD writer developed some problems. I usually write CDs at 12x but I thought that I’ll change that since everybody I know is using his CD writer at maximum or at near maximum speed. Well, I tried writing at 24x. Nero buffered up the data but when it came to the point to actually write the stuff on the media the disc spun up and then it spun right down. Then up again then down right away. And this process repeated itself over and over. Nero froze. I killed it with the task manager but the drive kept spinning the disc up and down. I tried to shut down but to no avail. The solution was pushing the reset button. I tried with 16x. Same result. 12x works as a charm though. I think I’ll visit my retailer very soon.