Most of the ridiculous shit that's done to cars in North America is hack jobs done on the cheap. Japan's car culture is entirely different... if you're going to spend a shitload of money on a vehicle, which they do, and you're only going to keep it for a few years before you get rid of it and spend a shitload of money on a new vehicle, which they also do, suddenly 20k in rare modifications is far easier to swallow.
There's what, nearly 30 cars in that photo? Could we put together nearly 30 near pristine modified Mk3s here, even if we held a national show? I don't think so... and I don't think we ever could, even back in '95, when they were theoretically more common.