Not to be mean, but every time I sit down to read Rifts, I can't even FIND the system in it. It's like a collection of notes about this really fucking cool idea without the instructions. Don't get me wrong, I fucking LOVE that fucking cool idea. It's so goddamn metal. I haven't read my SWADE Rifts stuff, but I think I'm going to try it out. SWADE makes more sense to me.
I don't think replacing the encyclopedia of SR6 rules with the elder-mystique of the secret system in Rifts is likely going to help. I really wish KS would hire a writer, an editor, and a design lead and step back from his house system and let some fresh faces rework it into something clear, playable, and understandable. I feel like there is a level of unseen awesome hiding in that elder library.
I will maintain that the best bang for your buck is to find a generic system of choice, and hole-out the system with a new one. You have so many options; GURPS, HERO, SWADE, BESM, Entropy, Everywhen, Cypher, Genysys, Mutants & Masterminds, EABA...! You can easily find a system that plays the way you like and use it for Shadowrun. In fact, I can't imagine another edition of SR. It should be a mulit-system setting with a ton of system-free material and system-specific handbooks. Being panned as a terrible system 6 times in a row should probably give someone a clue.