Kely X. Midili - Lost His ZR-1 In The Fire

[guinnessdood]

Kely asked me to post this for him...

I am sure many of you have seen and read about the utterly unreal [till you have been in it] fire storm we just suffered through in San Diego the past 3 days. After a middle of the night announcement [via police car loudspeaker] to evacuate our homes immediately, I did so as quickly as possible. My girl friend was also ordered to vacate her home in Ranch Bernardo, about 3 miles from where I live. Neither of us gave a thought to my '91 ZR that has been living in her garage for the past six or seven years, as of course, we both expected to be back in our homes within a few hours or perhaps a day at the most. Well, yep, her perfectly safe appearing California tract home got burned down to a crispy pile of ashes, along with my ZR. Under 30,000 miles, new F1 tires, new battery and kept as pristine as possible, yet driven when the mood struck me.

At the very least I thought I would have a salvageable LT5 and transmission, but all I expect to see when the police allow us back in will be a small pile of melted plastic and several lumps of melted metal.

So we scratch another original GM made '91 from the list of the living. Me? My house was not touched and other than several days of really bad air, we all came thru without a mark!

So I guess in the very near future I will bid the ZR community good bye as at my age I really should not be buying something as quick & fast as a ZR. It was insured for a stated value, and the insurance company has already informed me they are sending a check via next day delivery for well over $20k plus they will prepare another check once I send them photos. Pretty damn fast response for an insurance company!

Good luck to all and take care, it has been a fun filled 15 years of being the proud owner of a ZR.

I still have a never been on bronze top and all the original materials, including the brief case and most of all of the original
ZR-1 printed newsletters from the Larry Merrow days.



Kely

'91 #338 Red/Black
Best qtr time: 12.66 @ 114.9mph.

[Kevin]

oh man that's horrible

[GrayZ]

Damn, that sucks major weenage, sorry to hear of your "kings" demise,
yet the good thing, no one was hurt. I just recieved a pile of pictures
via a friend in California, it is hard to imagine a fire storm until you see one..

http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j9/kmoudy/ATT16392731.jpg
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j9/kmoudy/ATT16392742.jpg
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j9/kmoudy/ATT163929018.jpg
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j9/kmoudy/ATT16392797.jpg

[drmcar95]

Kely:

I wish you only the best. I can not really conceive of being in that type of mess and I am glad you and your girl friend are safe. We will miss your posts. Garth

[tf95ZR1]

I met Kely a few years ago at a GTG in San Diego. Very cool guy,
cool ZR1 with a Desert Development (?) exhaust. It was Loud!
He was very proud of his car.
So this really sucks, but I am glad he and his girlfriend are safe.
And what is this (what happened to the BS smilie?) BS about being
too old for a ZR1? :) I can name a LOT of old farts here with ZR1's.
And some don't even drive like old farts@!.
Can you use that word here?

[HIZNHRZ]

Very sorry to hear about your loss. Very glad to hear no one was hurt.

God Bless to you and your family.

[flyin ryan]

Very sorry to hear about your loss. Very glad to hear no one was hurt.

God Bless to you and your family.ditto:cry:

[Z Factor]

Thanks for posting his story and let him know we send or sympathy for his loss. While a ZR-1 in not as important as ones health, it is wonderful to own, and tough to lose.

When he is up to it, suggest he drop in.

[kely x]

A quick update: once I dig the ZR out from all the rumble and debris, I will be able to determine what is salvageable, if anything. My guess would be possibly the insides of the LT5, the transmission, rear end and maybe the exhaust.
If anyone wants the exhaust [Desert Development w/Walker SS mufflers] with X-pipe, no resonators it will
be available really cheap. I also have the original GM exhaust that has like 8,000 miles on it. Best if you live not too far away for these as they would be difficult to ship.
I also have a bronze top [new] and all the promo items, owners kit and more, including many of the original ZR Registry newsletters/magazines. I will give away free a set of drag slicks along with the inner tubes.
Best guess is I can dig the car out within the next 10 days. We heard something about the State or Federal government contracting to remove all debris piles at no charge, but again, that is government speak! Who knows if that will happen in a timely manner.

Thanks for all your concerns and support.....I will be test driving a 2008 ZO6, but at $77k, ouch man, that is stiff....!!

Respectfully,

Kely
my phone # is: 760-443-2200

[Jeffvette]

A quick update: once I dig the ZR out from all the rumble and debris, I will be able to determine what is salvageable, if anything. My guess would be possibly the insides of the LT5, the transmission, rear end and maybe the exhaust.
If anyone wants the exhaust [Desert Development w/Walker SS mufflers] with X-pipe, no resonators it will
be available really cheap. I also have the original GM exhaust that has like 8,000 miles on it. Best if you live not too far away for these as they would be difficult to ship.
I also have a bronze top [new] and all the promo items, owners kit and more, including many of the original ZR Registry newsletters/magazines. I will give away free a set of drag slicks along with the inner tubes.
Best guess is I can dig the car out within the next 10 days. We heard something about the State or Federal government contracting to remove all debris piles at no charge, but again, that is government speak! Who knows if that will happen in a timely manner.

Thanks for all your concerns and support.....I will be test driving a 2008 ZO6, but at $77k, ouch man, that is stiff....!!

Respectfully,

Kely
my phone # is: 760-443-2200

Kely, contact Dave Salvatore at Kerbeck Chevrolet www.kerbeck.com (http://www.kerbeck.com) They are currently offering roughly 5k off of new Z06's. The car will be built at the plant, put on a truck and delivered to the dealership of your choice for a courtesy delivery. Tell him I sent you.

Sorry about your loss. I could not imagine something like this hapening. I live less than 100 miles from a major volcano.

I would be interested in the registry mags as well.

[tomtom72]

I would just like to add my best wishes to you and your girl friend....I hope that life for the both of you turns out for the best.

What a shame about the house and the car.:cry:

JMHO....new is nice, maybe even better but there are quality Z's out there for the buying....nothing like having push rod free rpms.:mrgreen:

:cheers:
Tom

[Z Factor]

Thanks for all your concerns and support.....I will be test driving a 2008 ZO6, but at $77k, ouch man, that is stiff....!!

Respectfully,

Kely


While a Z06 is tempting, you can get another gem of a ZR-1 for 1/2 of that, so you might want to get back into another one. I will call you on the items you have (other than the mags). Feel free to PM me if you need any assistance as I have a few relatives not too far away that might be able to help out.

:cheers:

[ZZZZZR1]

wow so sorry!


Shame that bad things happen to good people....


If you get that Z06 please drive it like you STOLE IT!

:thumbsup:

[kely x]

This is what I have from the original registry newsletters. This was Larry Merow's publication out of Sayville, NY.

I have 23 in total:
1993: December
1994: April, May/June,July,August,Sept/Oct,Nov/Dec.
1995: Jan/Feb, Mar/April, <ay/June,July/Aug, Sept/Oct, Nov/Dec.
1996: Jan/Feb, Mar/April, May/June,July/Aug, Nov/Dec.
1997: Jan/Feb, Mar/April, July/Aug.
1998: May/June

These were some of the best years and are filled with great stories, tips and suggestions, etc. Stillwater info and notes and a lot lot more. Would be fantastic reading if you are new to the ZR or a long time owner that does not have these. One has a story about how the CA DMV came after me for having Nevada plates on my ZR [they READ the Registry!]. Big brother WAS watching. Jim van Dorn was a major contributor plus there were many others that were very ZR-1 knowledgable.

I hate doing the e-Bay thing. So, somebody make me a reasonable offer for these that I would now guess, are very rare items. I would prefer to sell all of these as a group to someone that is really into the cars.

Thanks,

Kely
#338
760-443-2200
midili@cox.net

[tf95ZR1]

Hi Kely!
Hope you are recovering OK.
I think Jeff Flint was interested in the Mags.
If not, I am.......
Ted

[WB9MCW]

So sorry to hear of your great loss! Glad the insurance came through quick for you.

Sure would be nice to see you get another ZR-1--but hey a new Z06 would would be a hoot too!

Hope your GF get a good deal on the insurance for the home loss.

God bless ya both and save the wave for that next new ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ!!!

[cuisinartvette]

Sorry to hear abotu your Z, thats gotta hurt. Hopefully you get situated real soon....Good luck on the new Z, wouldnt blame ya to take the plunge on 505hp stock.

If you think some motor/trans stuff may be salveagable, let me know, Im just north of L.A. a bit.
818-800-1178

Best wishes on getting settled into a new place.

[kely x]

Thanks to everyone for your kind support. It looks like I have an intact LT5 less all the wring, hoses, belt, etc. The valve covers are not harmed so the heads, cams, etc should be just fine. Not sure about the plenum as a part of the garage wall is where the hood was. I got a look at the transmission and I think when the tires blew, the car went down and prevented any damage to the under parts of the car.
So, yes, there will be many salvagable parts. I have a high bid so far of $2,000 for the entire carcass, which is the way I prefer to sell it....I do not have the time or interest in taking out the motor, tranny, etc. I would just like someone to take it all away....

Again, thanks to all.

Kely

[93RubyZ]

Sorry to hear this. Glad that everyone made it out OK.

[bradslt5]

kely, just wanted to let you know that the boys made it home ok . thankyou for everything. it looks like i am going to have to polisheverything on top. but I have allways wanted to do that anyway . hopethe extra cash helps you to get the ride you want . i'll let you know how it works out . have a great day