Great points on both sides of this issue.
One interesting development that's fairly new ... and that could affect dual sport and ADV single cylinder bikes in the future ... is the use of EFI on modern motocross bikes.

Has anyone here seen a modern moto crosser stripped down? Anyone checked out how the EFI works?

The clever packaging and compactness of components and relative simplicity give hope that this sort of system could be adapted to a road legal dual sport single in the future.

It's taken the Big Four about 10 years to work the bugs out of Moto Cross EFI systems. Interesting that KTM were the LAST of the big players to go from a Carb to EFI on their race bikes.

Yamaha, Suzuki and Honda were out front on this and LOST many races early on due to EFI gremlins sidelining their bikes. Lots of documentation on early problems.

But in the last 4 or 5 years EFI "troubles" seem to be resolved ... although KTM's Super Cross/Moto Cross star Ryan Dungey was recently sidelined by what was probably an EFI problem.

By most accounts Moto Cross EFI systems are now bullet proof. This sort of usage is probably the very best testing regime you could have for an electronic fuel system. If it can survive Motocross, chances are good it will be good in the middle of Mongolia going under water with Colebatch and friends.

Not heard much on technical side of EFI R&D for MX bikes, but having recently seen a modern YZ450 up close and naked, I was stunned how tiny, lightweight and compact the entire system was. The mechanic explained where key components were located and what would need changing if you had a failure and what that might involve.

Pretty simple really. Un Plug, Plug in new bit. Small box to test components. He said he's NEVER seen ANY failure of any components yet.

Will any of this new technology filter down to street legal dual sport bikes like the KLR650, KLR Super Sherpa, XT250's, XR650L Hondas, DR650's, DRZ400S ??

It's clear that any "new" generation Dual sports still produced with carbs will have to up grade to EFI ... which way will they go? Big, heavy, expensive and overly complex systems as produced by BMW? Or something as elegant and simple as the system Yamaha are now using .... and evolving every season?