Different kettle of fish.
As has been said, 89 GTR's are not by any means all trash. One of the problems is that a lot of people who couldnt previously afford a GTR have found this stupidly cheap 89 models which have suddenly fallen within reach and not considered the potential running issues of one of these "cheap" GTR's.
People seem to buy an 89/90 R32 GTR with the intention of modding it as soon as it arrives, when in reality, a few grand needs to be set aside for a very thorough major service of the car. This is absolutely crucial when you dont know the history of the car. All consumables like water pump, timing belt etc should be done, injectors need to be cleaned as they are a common cause of engines leaning out and cleaning them is inexpensive.
The bottom line is if you are prepared to spend some money up front on preventative maintenance, you should have a reliable and trouble free car.