Go back and read the original bag of tricks, feats, and payloads (and missions) that the designers claimed for the Shuttle....none have panned out so far.
The problem is dealing with the reentry heat and still having a vehicle that's spaceworthy....why not just get a working space vehicle in space via the payload of another workhorse and build and keep the fleet in space? Concentrate on moving away from this planet and looking for alloys, etc. that can stand the heat of reentry among other things....
If we're gonna explore space, we better be prepared to live in it, not trying to figure out how to get from our house out through the driveway to the car.....
Jimmuh Carter forbid the use of titanium on the shuttle. Aluminum is cheaper.