GASTROENTEROLOGIST-TURNED-MECHANIC RECOMMENDS TAILPIPE EXAM EVERY FIVE YEARS

Dr. Goblo-Ben Hennemeyer performs an exhaustoscopy on a Land Rover

Dr. Goblo-Ben Hennemeyer gently guides the thin, flexible tube into the Land Rover’s tailpipe.  It’s an exam he recommends all vehicles undergo every five years.  We interviewed Dr. Hennemeyer about the procedure:

PP: You’re both a gastroenterologist and a mechanic?

 DrH:  We prefer the term technician.

DrH: No, I meant…never mind.  Yes, I am.

PP: Tell us about this procedure.

DrH:  It’s called an Exhaustoscopy and basically, we extend a flexible tube with a little camera mounted on it into the tailpipe all the way to the vehicle’s exhaust manifold to screen for sooty growths and muffler polyps.

PP:  Sounds painful.

DrH:  No, we disconnect the battery.  Actually, the worst part is the gallon of Gunk MotorMedic you have to circulate through the engine the day before.  Just when you think it’s all cleaned out of the system, another squirt comes out.

PP:  Oh my.  What about vehicles with dual exhaust?

DrH:  It takes longer, but it’s important to do both sides.  The worst are cars like Corvettes that have four exhaust pipes.  Thank God people don’t.

PP:  I never thought about that.   It must be quite different performing this exam on vehicles versus a human patient.

DrH:  Yes.  People tend to complain more but on the other hand, we don’t see a lot of rust-through.