I'll weigh in here, we've thrashed our Mk2 pretty good this season and worked all the bugs out.

Like:
Everything that you do, much improved fit and finish compared to previous boats. Small things like a new boom universal, velcro jib ties, and chafe protectors on the hull make a big difference. Deck foam is awesome. All rivets in the beams and spars have plastic washers for insulation.

A lot of your dislikes are options in the race package. Nacra footstraps, 16:1 downhaul, vulcanization tape, etc. The jib downhaul setup is really slick, a twin sheave thing leading to recessed cleats on either side of the front beam.

We opted not to get the race package (save a little money and build as we like). Things like the spin pole and board uphaul we build differently than some other boats. We'll put some detail photos up on microwindracing. Only a few complaints from us:
A boat set-up manual would be nice, basic stuff the tuning guides don't cover.
Stern plugs as an added option, not a necessary fitting.
Don't drill and rivet the jib block to the pole, easy to break.
Spreaders are clunky for sure (some boats are running awesome carbon ones!)

It's still basically an Infusion, but with a bunch of small tweaks to make for a better product. I don't think building a Mk1 today would result in a much cheaper boat. If you look at the big three builders, all the new designs are getting more expensive, I guess it's more of a market thing.