I would guess that the (relative) lack of a response is due to some or all of the following:
1. Very generally speaking, the bike itself and Suzuki's activities in relationship to it were pretty much slagged off over a period of time on here. Consequently owners may be a bit cautious about posting.
2. People's real-world experience of using the bike extends to just under 3 months which isn't very much time to offer much more than has already been written by lots of journalists and which can be experienced on a long test ride. Most of the reviews I've read seem to echo my own thoughts (even one or two points (from memory) of the webbikeworld review resonated with me).
3. There aren't many people on here who actually own one - maybe 4 or 5 off the top of my head. I know at least one of those isn't a frequent visitor. Less owners and a short period of ownership isn't likely to yield a plethora of information.
4. Not everyone is great at expressing themselves in writing, nor necessarily enjoys it. I'm sure if anyone met any of the new owners in a pub or olde coffee shoppe somewhere they'd have a hard time shutting them up about the new bike, especially if they'd ridden there!
5. Quite a lot of comments have already been posted here on the forum (notwithstanding the time period and low owner count) and a brief search or browse will easily find them. Not much point in writing that which has already been written. (Except in the case of anything to do with oil, tyres or ebay links for Aprilia mirrors, seemingly
)
My own experience/viewI bought mine on 1st March and regrettably have only managed about 1100 miles since then (work and home life are both very busy at the moment), so have relatively limited experience. Whilst my DL650 L2 was a brilliant bike I wanted something more planted on the motorway/fast A roads - a bit more "tank-like", for want of a better phrase.
Setting the issue of price aside, I accept I paid a premium for being an early adopter. Before buying it I tested a R1200GS, and a Super Tenere. I rejected the BMW (which I really enjoyed riding) because of the poor reliability issues that have been widely reported, because it had lots of technology which increases the likelihood of a problem developing and because the nearest dealer is 45+ mins away. I rejected the S10 mostly just because I strongly disliked the cross plane engine. My dealer is great (Alford Bros., Folkestone), accommodating and helpful and the first service cost me £70-odd quid, so no dearer than the 650 really. I seem to recall some here saying they'd been quoted or charged £130+ for their first service, which sounds expensive to me.
I like/don't mind the fact the DL1000 doesn't have a shaft drive. Doing as few miles as I do, lubing a chain isn't a problem for me. I can put a chain on in the back of beyond (that's more than 10 minutes walk to the nearest house down here in the south, sadly!) but there's nothing I can do with a broken shaft drive. I didn't want a shaft drive, wouldn't mind if it did have one and completely understand why some people do want them.
I hated the suspension the way it came. The front was sportsbike-hard and the back was DL650 soft. As Jacko pointed out in his test ride write up, it's totally imbalanced and you want a bike like this to just take you over the potholes and not let you know about them. Riding very small, very bumpy back lanes on a DL1000 with a Fireblade front end and a snatchy throttle (more on that below) was very very very one-enjoyable. When it went in for its first service they softened the front and it's much much better now. I intend to soften it a little more though, just for my preference.
I hated the fact that when I was pottering around the back lanes I would slowly roll off the throttle approaching blind corners and the power would just cut instantly at a certain point. And then equally abruptly it would lurch forward as I rolled on once round the corner. (So bumpy with hard suspension plus on/off throttle = deeply unpleasant kangerooing down the road.) This was not a case of needing to feather the clutch, etc, as suggested by many here. However, I changed the traction control setting from 2 to 1 and it seems to have almost totally cured the "problem", certainly to the point where I hardly notice it any more. I may ask the dealer to try to tweak the TPS to cure it without the need to alter the TC.
I hated the fact that it wasn't "just a big DL650" when I first got it. Part of that was down to a mistaken pre-conception on my part, partly down to the much firmer front suspension and on/off throttle I used to have and partly down to the fact that it isn't a "just a big 650".
So now the good bit! It does, now I've tweaked the suspension and TC, feel like "just a big 650" with better brakes, a more comfortable seat and lots more oomph. It's very light, both pushing/paddling it around and on the go. In fact, it feels no heavier than my old 650.
The engine is very smooth, not inline 4 smooth, but smooth nevertheless. From what I can hear above cam gear whine (not a complaint, just a characteristic) and through earplugs (and a silencer the size of two large bread bins welded together!) it sounds good too. It's still versatile enough to comfortably ride down bumpy, gravel-strewn, mud-covered back lanes and then sit planted down the motorway at typical motorway speeds. It tips in and corners nicely and overtakes require no planning - you just move your right hand a tiny bit more and go past. As someone who feels uncomfortable being alongside a car driven by someone who in all likelihood probably isn't thinking about what they're doing and what's around them, that's a good thing! My (mixed) ride of 100-odd miles the other week yielded 59 mpg or so, which is pretty impressive for a "big" bike. Even running and having to keep below 4k rpm isn't onerous as the engine is so responsive in the lower rev range.
The dash is nice - clear and easy to read, plenty of useful information, and easy to change on the move, and the 12v socket is handy for charging phones/Sat Nav etc (although it's fused at 3A so not man enough for a compressor - might have to look into that..).
I'm about 6' - 6' 1" and find the standard seat very comfortable (more so than the 650, and that was comfortable too) and have no problem putting my feet flat on the ground, nor where the pegs sit in relation to my legs when at a standstill. I did try the higher seat but found no particular improvement in comfort and actually felt like I was sitting on the bike, rather than in and with it. I swapped it back.
In short, I love it, and love it more the more I ride it.
However, that's my opinion, for my riding, with my budget, at my height/size, with my personal preferences etc. For some people the 1000 will be ideal, and equally, for others, the 650 will be just as perfect.
