Mercedes-Benz Ponton
Door Opener Pushrod Rubber Buffer

October 8, 2026

Many years ago, Phil Langlois (d.) had a batch of door rod rubber buffers made, and offered them up to IPOG members. I had purchased some from him, but as is all too often the case, I cannot find them! Fast forward to present day when I need them, I now have a 3D printer, and the means to make them myself, and doing so would take less time than trying to find the others.

I’m pleased to say that after some tinkering with a parametric CAD file, I managed to create a suitable replacement. Printing them in thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) works wonderfully. Since the original buffers are practically guaranteed to break on removal, these replacements can be used to provide anti-rattle, and alignment as required.

I suppose I should explain why my model has a wider base, while the original is a simple cylinder. The reason is simply practicality, as it provides a larger surface area for your thumb to push the piece in fully. A little petroleum jelly helps too. Also, there is no vertical hole in the original, but I added one to make the TPU more pliable.

Attached are photos of the model, and of the buffers installed. I’m also including the stereolithography STL CAD file, and the OpenSCAD file for anyone who wishes to make a replacement that more closely resembles the original. The parametric code is documented, and straightforward. Just change the “foot_dia” value to match the “base_dia” value, and set the “vertical_hole_dia” to 0.0 to get closer to the original design.

Regards,
Senen