Chin up, dude. What matters is you and that you're alive and okay. It's just a lump of metal and glass like every other one, and a bit of paperwork. You've said you don't want to repair it so move on. The 8th Gen is a better car in many, many respects. You will love it.
The first tyre place balanced two wheels, but the second tyre place still put 25-50g on all four wheels.
Did the first tyre place really get the balancing so wrong on two wheels?
If not then is the balancing still wrong now?
The mechanic was right all along about the intermediate shaft being...
If you get hold of the ARB drop links when the car is on the ground and pull them, if they've worn out you'll feel a bit of movement.
It's really easy to shear the heads off the ARB D link bolts. I heated mine first with a Rothenberger plumber's torch and they came out fine then.