I have to agree with you. I just got the game and it's a TON of fun. I don't know what's in the upgrade either, but I installed it. Wonderful little racing game.
Hell, some of the best games, like Master of Magic, take up less space than that. I played around with it, and I thought it was kinda fun. Reminded me of a light space sim with station building elements. I can see a lot of potential here. I've played EVERY space sim for the PC around, and this could be a "good" one, not a "great" one.
I'm always happy to see devs supporting the mod community like this. It just makes the gaming experience better for everyone overall. I REALLY look forward to more mods and gametypes.