Dremel a notch in the inside rear part of the cover and then it will slide right off. I am guessing the removal of it is why you think it is a complete POS.
The real part that breaks is the Rubber Stud.. That holds the Alum Plate. Hard tree hits will break them some times.. Driveways jumps are hard on them too!
I simply took some big nippers to the two plastic knobs on the inside of the cover. Problem solved. Now I just fasten it in place with the two small screws on the outside of the cover and it works perfect. Now a piece of cake to take on and off.