| Manufacturer | Cagiva |
|---|---|
| Production | Since 1989 |
| Class | Sport bike |
| Engine | 125 cc (7.6 cu in) two-stroke single |
| Power | approx. 30 hp |
| Wheelbase | 1,375 mm (54.1 in) |
| Weight | 129 kg (280 lb) (dry) |
| Fuel capacity | 14 litres (3.1 imp gal; 3.7 US gal) |
The Mito (English: Myth) is a small-engined Cagiva sports motorcycle. The powerplant consists of a two-stroke 125 cubic centimetres (7.6 cu in) single cylinder, with some models capable of producing over 30 horsepower (22 kW) in unrestricted form.
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The Cagiva Mito was the first bike of Valentino Rossi, eventual 9 time MotoGP world champion. In 1994, Rossi had been provided a factory Mito by Cagiva team manager Claudio Lusuardi and cruised to the Italian title.
During the 1990s the Mito was the arch-rival to Aprilia's AF1 125 FUTURA and later the RS125, a similar 2-stroke 125 cc race-replica.[1]
The Mito was introduced in 1989 as the Mk I. The Mk II followed on with minor changes. The SP versions featured Marchesini rims and uprated suspension.
In 1994 the bike was restyled by Massimo Tamburini with similar lines to the then new Ducati 916, a design he also penned.[2][3] The similarity is particularly visible in the front and rear fairings.
The Evo I is identified by the 3 spoke rims and the 7 speed gearbox, grey lower panels, solid colours on the tail section.
The Evo II is identified by the 6 spoke rims and the 6 speed gearbox, solid colour lower panels, white area on the tail section.
In February 2007, Malaysian company MOFAZ announced that they will be locally assembling the last batch of the Mito 125 Evolution for Malaysian buyers. The bike will be known as the Momos Cagiva Mito 125 Fauzy's Edition and only 300 will be made for the production run. Two colours will be made available which are matte black and classic red.[4]
In late 2009 Cagiva dropped the Evolution model, leaving just the Mito SP525 and Raptor 125 in the lineup.
In 2005 at the EICMA motorcycle show, Cagiva launched a limited production tuned competition version of the Mito known as the SP525. This is something of a homage to the Cagiva GP500 (C594) racing bike. The engine and several other areas have been tweaked, still displacing 125 cubic centimetres (7.6 cu in), but now producing >37 brake horsepower (28 kW) at the crankshaft. Front and rear fairings were modified to look more like the C594, 8-spoke forged aluminium wheels were added, while speedometer, lights and mirrors were removed to reduce the overall weight. The bike is not road-legal.
For 2008, Cagiva added the Mito SP525 road bike (not to be confused with the racing SP525 above) alongside the Mito Evo II. In terms of looks, the new bike inherits some stylistic traits from the competition SP525, essentially similar front and rear fairings.
On a technical level, the bike retains much the same rolling chassis as the Evo and the engine is still a 125cc two-stroke, but has had several changes, notably a new Electronic Carburetion System (developed in conjunction with Dell'Orto) governing both fuel-air, oil-mix and ignition, allowing it to pass tougher Euro 3 emissions regulations.[5]
In November 2006 at EICMA, Cagiva unveiled the Mito 500 concept bike. The two-stroke 125 cc engine has been replaced with a fuel-injected, four-stroke 500 cubic centimetres (31 cu in) DOHC single, courtesy of Husqvarna, capable of putting out around 60 brake horsepower (45 kW) and 50 newton metres (37 ft·lbf) torque. Replacing the two-stroke's expansion chamber exhaust is a tiny, seemingly unbaffled system, its exit just visible at the rear of the underside fairing. With forged alloy wheels it weighs in at 133 kilograms (290 lb) - just 4 kilograms (8.8 lb) more than the Mito 125.[6]
In 1998, Cagiva added a naked equivalent to the Mito Evo, named the Planet which bears some resemblance to the Ducati Monster. The Planet, unlike the Aprilia Tuono, has been given all new fairings including a fuel tank which can hinge upwards allowing access for space to store an open face helmet.
In 2003, Cagiva discontinued the Planet and renamed the particular motorcycle in 2004 as the Raptor 125 which is essentially the same however with changes to the appearance.