Auto flight,
I agree with a lot of your comments, however.....
What airline do you work for ?
If you work for an airline where penalties are the norm for a pilot that takes an unacceptable aeroplane ( bulldog attitude is not required.....EVER, it's my life and the passengers after all), then you need to change airlines, or, at the very least, report it.
I have had a number of occasions where maintenance have suggested I take an aeroplane which, in consultation with my offsider, was unacceptable, no bulldog, just not acceptable. Never a word from the "bosses".
Pressured into taking an unacceptable aeroplane is, and never will be, an excuse.
Cheers