What would be a good way to simulate something going through a tube where the object is bigger then the tube, so the tube extends a bit?

uhm, depending on how accurate the distortion of the tube should be with the object in side it, you could use BULGE
bulge is either included with max or is a free plugin from maxplugins.de i cannot recall

gues its a plugin since i've never seen it in max itself

toss a bulge modifier on the tube, then use the subobject gizmo and animate it going along the tube

Ok, ill try the site thanks

a FFD cylinder spacewarp would also work i presume

hum that looks like it would do, lets test

Hey frank here is a solution that should work nicely with a more complex form.
You can use the displacement modifier or space warp with spherical gizmo.
And apply a height map of your object projected on a sphere.
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Andyba, 3d artist
skills: 3d modeling, texturing, rendering, 3d character animation, compositing
3d software experience: 3ds max, Maya, Softimage XSI, Deep Paint 3d, Body Paint 3D, Wings 3D, Z Brush
2d software experience: Adobe Photoshop, Adobe After effects, Macromedia Flash, Freehand