Re: SV1000?
When news and pictures of the the TL-S came out in '97, lots and lots of folks (myself included) got boners the size of bread loaves. Personally, I hadn't been that excited about a new bike since the '83 750 Interceptor.
In fact, most of the first few batches of TL-S's that arrived around my neck of the woods sold for way over MSRP due to the pent-up demand.
It was only when the word started spreading about all the problems this bike had (such as chronic stalling, horrible lean spots, jerky throttle response, atrocious gas mileage, tendency to overheat, propensity to tankslap, and, probably worst of all, a real crappy shock design that was almost impossible to rectify without taking out a second on the house) that the hysteria over this bike dissipated.
If Suzuki had taken the time to make sure the TL-S was done right back then, it would be the success that the SV650 is currently, I am certain.
I stand by my assertion that an SV1000 would be a huge sales success, as long as Suzuki does not repeat the blunders which caused the TL-S debacle.