MK1 Berg Cup kit - recommended supplier?

Sorry, i meant to say still use 15" wheels but use the arches designed for 13" wheels - there just seems to be so much gap between the wheels and arches on the 15" versions, like the black one above.

My biggest problem will be sorting the Berg arches on the rear wheel arches due to mine being a 4-door - would be easier with the 13" versions due to them being a smaller diameter.

If i used the 13" Berg arches, used 7x15 wheels with a reasonable offset and stuck to 195/50 track tyres, then hopefully the wheels would sit nicely inside the Berg arches and not rub. I've never had any problems on the rear, only a little on the front.

I also forgot to mention, in the pic above of my car, i was using 13mm spacers on the front too.

 

wheels sit nicely in those arches currently then.

the 13" looks nicer to, as it sits that bit lower and doesn't merge into the swage line down the side of the car. which looks odd to me.

 

Couple of pics i took last year:





Those are obviously the 15" version of the arches and look how much space there is. The car wasn't running particularly wide or low ET wheels as it was morning practice. The wheels are however, closer to what i'd be using.

If you look at how far forward (towards the middle of the car) the rear arches go, i'd never get them to fit a 4-door properly without some serious work to make them fit.

Although these appear to be home made:



They look much closer in size and diameter to the 13" versions and the car was also running 15" wheels with a more 'normal' sized tyre.

I wonder what difference in the rolling diameter is between 13" and 15" wheels with appropriate tyres?

 

The other issue to factor in is width. As you come outward, the chances of hitting the outer lip increase obviously, as do the chances of hitting the front edge on lock.

Combine these 2 in cornerning conditions, add a bit of castor for the track, and (looking at about the blue pic above) the problems come home to roost at around the 10 or 11 o'clock mark. If they don't straight off, add a bit of castor later and then the prob arises, cue arch cutting!

Also suspension compliance plays a part - depending on how hard the car is set up. Being hillclimbers, the Berg cars will have a softer set up than track.

From my observations with the Reeves cars (pre and post-Berg kit) give yourself plenty of room if you're packing those arches out.

Admittedly it's a minefield of guesswork when buying arch kits, but I hope useful in some way

 

Do you know the spec of the wheels and tyres the Reeves's use?

In my opinion, the biggest problem i'll face is sorting the front edge of the rear arches in the area where the rear door is (8 to 11 o'clock). The BBS rear arches needed a fair bit of modding to get them to follow the curve of the arch, and they have a much smaller outer diameter then those 15" Berg arches.

If i go for the 13" arches, and find that they are too small after trying them out, i can always sell them and buy the bigger ones instead. I'm sure that someone would buy them. The front spoiler is the same for both kits.

I'll never know if i don't try

 

It runs on 15s, but profile varies from what I'd guess by eye is 45 to 55-ish. It's also wide-tracked, so really it's a case of eyeing it up and seeing how far the wheels fill the arches out, and taking a reading from that.

The biggie will be rear arches. If you widen the back wheels, you've no choice but to remove a large amout of metal. It's not a nice job to do properly tbh. Tubbing is the correct way - see 16valver's thread as that has the best pics on it (it was done before he bought it).

 

Tubbing the rear a little is on the cards when the bodywork gets done - seperating the inner and outer skin, moving the inner outer edge up and then re-welding the two together, before trimming the outer back. This would be done to suit whatever arches are on it, hense the need to decide which ones to go for.

I've just had a quick look at the car, because all of a sudden i got the horrible feeling that there was no antifreeze in it, but it was all ok. I poked a screwdriver through the inner sill and straight out through the outer sill........its gonna need to have some welding done anyway, so might as well get it all done at the same time.

I don't want to pester KWL too much, but could really do with a better pic of the 13" arches.

 

Not sure how relevant this is to a mk1 but the 15" arches I got from WL motorsport fitted fine around the rear doors on my mk2. I can also fit 17" wheels under them but only after changing to mk3 front wishbones to push the wheels forward.

Also (depending on how much work you want to take on) you could always cut the arch though the middle and either extend or shorten the arch untill your happy with the shape / look of it.

 

I had my bodywork ripped out until it came out to the wider arch iirc? though yet to fit my wide wheels under there.

 

Got mine from http://www.mcracingsa.com/catalogue.htm

 

Top website! They've got loads of bits!

 

Shame i can't understand a word of it though!!!

 

Spanish mk1 (soft top):
http://i380.photobucket.com/albums/oo241/yolanda1a/IMGP1683.jpg

posted just for people to see Berg style on a soft top.

 

been thinking about the arch issue aswell.

My mk1 is a raddo vr6 at the front, subframe fitted etc and a mk2 with +10mm spacers either side!

have i seen someone do a complete front wing assembly? save on the grafting.

i'll check my girth with the mo's on and the r888 as they add a bit aswell

if we can gt two sets sent it'll save on postage etc???? OR i could collect if tied in with a "berg" weekender!

 

I got a set of Berg cup arches from Nick of NPS Plastics, I just had the arches for my MK1 hill climb car and thy seem ok. He was struggling to source a spoiler to match but i gave him a contact in germany to get a spoiler from to copy. To be honest I would have got a complete set from Germany as the prices were not too bad but It's just easier to source one in the UK. He's in Blackpool I think, advertises on Ebay, type in 'Bergcup arches'. Not easy to tell how well they fit as the car is an ex circuit car and doesn't really have a straight panel on it but they don't seem too bad and not silly wide - am in the process of the 2010 rebuild so not complete yet. I'm running 15" x 8J rims and with a 25mm spacer they seem about right!. Nick seems to be a tidy guy, PM me for his mobile number.

 

Harvey Rice at

www.hrengineering.net

Harvey has informed me that he has molds for a Zender kit (same as on the kamei Golf when it arrived from the USA iirc).



He is making the plug for the front splitter/spoiler at the moment....

 

They look good mike but for 680 i think its a bit steep.

 

Didn't see the price sorry, just passed on the info. yes quite a bit more than what mine were.

 

I found them advertised on ebay so no worries. I suppose they look a lot better fit than the ones we brought if you were just going to rivit them on and not bother blending them in.