Patent ID: 7364010

Claim:
A motorcycle comprising: a vehicle body comprising a frame; an engine operatively attached to the vehicle body, a shock absorber operatively attached to the vehicle body behind said engine and proximate a central portion thereof, a rear wheel operatively attached to the vehicle body by a swing arm and disposed behind said shock absorber, wherein said rear wheel is rotatably mounted to an end of said swing arm, and swing arm is reciprocally and swingably mounted to said frame by a pivot connection, and an exhaust system comprising a first muffler and a second muffler operatively attached to the vehicle body and disposed respectively on the upper left and right sides of the vehicle body proximate the rear wheel, and an exhaust pipe extending from the engine and connected to said mufflers, wherein: said exhaust pipe extends from said engine to one of the left and right side of the shock absorber, said exhaust pipe comprises a branched portion in which said exhaust pipe is branched into a first exhaust branch pipe and a second exhaust branch pipe, said branched portion located adjacent to said shock absorber; said first exhaust branch pipe is connected to said first muffler disposed on the same side of the shock absorber as the exhaust pipe, and said second exhaust branch pipe is connected to said second muffler after passing between said shock absorber and said rear wheel to extend crosswise from one of the left and right sides of said vehicle body to the other of the left and right sides of said vehicle body; wherein the exhaust system is configured and arranged to provide clearance between said branch pipes and said rear wheel, such that during operation of said motorcycle, said rear wheel is capable of swingable movement without contacting said exhaust pipe.