El Paso and drag pipes.
Yup. Don't see many V2K's around here.
I'm running straight drag pipes right now. Got some glasspacks like Poncho runs, but before I put 'em on I took it for a ride around the block and when I got back I just couldn't bring myself to put those glasspacks on. Stuck some extensions on the ends of the stock pipes to get them exiting back around the rear axle and unless I have some kind of problems with them, I think I just "cured" my exhaust problem.
Most people are really down on drag pipes, but:
1) The volume is adjustable with the throttle. At cruise they just make a nice rumble. Around town, with the little throttle you need to get the V2K up to the speed limit, noise is not a big issue. Crack that throttle open and you release some serious decibels. It screams "HEY THERE'S A MOTORCYCLE HERE!!" I don't know about the town you ride in, but around here, it's handy to be able to get some drivers attention.
I let my bike warm up at idle in the morning, I don't go revving it at wot just to impress the neighbors. Also, I actually TALK to my neighbors. That's right! I can ask them if the bike bothers them, and if it does, I'll fix it. Just like guns don't make criminals, drag pipes don't make inconsiderate as***les.
2) Drag pipes cost you midrange power and give you a little bit more top end. The net change is a loss: you lose more midrange than you gain top end (with a stock engine). So your bike won't accelerate as hard in the midrange with drag pipes. I have never understood this argument. Who tries to accelerate hard in the midrange? Makes no sense. If you are trying to accelerate as hard as possible, you need to be putting peak engine power to the rear wheel, no? That's what the transmission is for.
I guess the argument is that you should be able to achieve maximum acceleration in any gear by simply twisting the throttle wide open, which also makes no sense. There is such a thing as being in the wrong gear. Why do people even talk about "roll-on" acceleration? Too lazy or uncoordinated to downshift? Admittedly, the shifter on the V2K isn't optimized for flicking through the gears, but that can be fixed.
3) Drag pipes are the lightest, cheapest exhaust you can have. No argument here. You can save a LOT of weight going to a set of drag pipes. It is also very easy to tuck them up out of the way, if you can cut and weld a little, that is.
So maybe the next time you see a bike with drag pipes, you won't immediately conclude that the rider is an inconsiderate jerk who is too stupid to know all the power he's losing running those pipes.