I came up with this idea in another thread, but I quite like it so I wanted to highlight it here and get your thoughts on it.
Right now, the probability of hitting and the maximum damage output of a ship are usually tied together. They're either both high or both low -- you can't consistently have a high hit probability and a low maximum damage output unless you take certain expensive upgrades like predator or gunner.
I believe that maneuverable ships should have a high hit probability, independent of their maximum damage output. If we look at the current ships that are suffering, it is ships with lower attack than agility: the tie advanced, the a-wing, and to some extent the HWK. The standard tie fighter is an exception, probably because it is very cheap.
To increase hit probabiilty while maintaining a low damage output, I suggest this upgrade:
"Modification, 1 point: improved targeting. Increase your primary attack value by 2. You cannot do more than two damage. You cannot equip this if you do not have the <target lock> icon".
This increases the hit probability while maintaining (or reducing, at range 1) maximum damage output at 2. The target lock requirement prevents its use on tie fighters.