For me, having the ability to track shipments via the Web ranks right up there with weather radar and live traffic cams. According to the UPS website, the CB should be on my doorstep tomorrow afternoon. The air filter showed up yesterday via USPS Priority Mail -- but not before taking the scenic route.
It shipped last Thursday afternoon from Cincinnati, just 120 miles from here. By Friday morning the package had traveled 250 miles to a USPS depot in Michigan, more than 200 miles from its intended destination. Instead of being re-routed directly here, it was bounced back to Cincinnati, where it was scanned Saturday afternoon. My local Post Office got the wandering parcel yesterday morning and had it in my hands a couple of hours later.Memo to the USPS: Please don't expect me to salute your next request for a rate increase.
I've been installing K&N air filters in all my vehicles -- cars, trucks and motorcycles -- for over 20 years, almost reflexively, and I've been satisfied with the results. Since I don't fancy my TrailBlazer to be a hot rod, I didn't spring for one of K&N's expensive CAI (cold-air intake) kits, opting instead for the stock-replacement element.
Honestly, I felt a bit silly swapping the air filter on a GM Certified Used Vehicle less than 1,500 miles after buying it -- until, that is, I lifted the lid off the airbox.
The filter element's white pleats were black, inside and out, thoroughly choked with dirt and soot. What's more, the intake horn was installed upside-down, further disrupting air flow that already was severely restricted.Certified? My ass. So much for that 117-point inspection.
My truck's 4.2-liter six essentially has been breathing through a crimped straw for as long as I've owned it. It was bound to run more happily with the new K&N anyway, but now it'll be jumping for joy. I'll be paying particular attention to fuel mileage, which I'm certain will increase by at least one real-world mpg.
After this experience, methinks that GM Certified Used Vehicles and the United States Postal Service have earned the same scrutiny that Pres. Ronald Reagan, quoting a Russian proverb, applied to the Soviet Union -- Доверяй, но проверяй.
