Best "advice" I can give you is to go over the ST-Owners.com forum (
http://www.st-owners.com/) and post your questions there.
Lots of riders gripe about the heat - lots don't. Final drive should be cleaned and regreased with Honda Moly 60 at each tire change - no one knows how long a properly maintained final drive will last. 03 ABS models have an electrically adjustable windshield. Just about everyone ends up getting an aftermarket seat. Throttle takes some getting used to, fuel injection can be off or on at low rpm!