VMWare ESXi 5.1 install problem

Agree with @hanccocka here; I just bought some 160 G6's and used the HP-customized ESXi install and it works flawlessly. Another option, according to this vmware Communities thread is to change your onboard video memory:
http://communities.vmware.com/thread/326371

Regards.
~coolsport00

Hancocka - thanks for the suggestion on using the HP custom CD - that gets me much further into the process (yellow progress bar goes all the way across the screen) but then it stops with the same error.  Coolsport00 - my onboard video options are "auto detect" or "enabled".  I tried both - same result.  Other ideas?

The last thing it loads before it fails is "loading imgpayld.tgz"

You checked the MD5 hash after downloading, right? That hash isn't there to verify if the ISO is "safe" from the standpoint of a hacker replacing the ISO with something malicious; its there to allow you to verify the download for corruption. If the MD5 matches, then you should retry the disc burn--or re-create your thumbdrive installer--on a different machine in case there's something wrong with the original system's optical.
Most of the errors I see in installs (on hardware that's on the HCL) is related to issues with the media, not the software.
The optical on the DL160 itself could be having problems, so if you haven't tried using a thumbdrive, you should.

Since you have a question outside the context of your original post, you'll need to submit another question. It is against EE rules to have multiple questions in a single thread/post.

Regards.
~coolsport00

Ended up needing the 8 mb video card and the HP Custom esxi download suggested by hancocka.