The five Mazda3 vehicles shown here are but a small drop in the bucket of more than 4 million.

Mazda3 Milestone

It goes without saying that Mazda3 is an important model in the Mazda lineup. Mazda3 accounts for roughly 30 percent of the automaker’s sales worldwide—a reality that has only been exacerbated by the vehicle’s popular redesign for 2014. In conjunction with the fresh KODO styling update and the fuel economy inherent to the vehicle’s SkyActiv powertrain, Mazda recently announced an eclipse of the 4-million unit milestone for Mazda3.

Mazda3 first went into production in June of 2003 at the automaker’s assembly plant in Hiroshima, Japan. That means Mazda3 reached the 4 million unit mark in approximately 10.5 years—the fastest that any Mazda model has every reached that high mark for production.

Mazda3 models enjoyed in the United States are built in North America at Mazda’s Mexico plant.

The widespread availability of Mazda3 is one of the factors that drove the car to reach the 4 million mark so quickly. Mazda3 is sold in more than 120 countries worldwide, and the car’s loci of manufacturing have grown in union with its popularity. In addition to Japan, Mazda3 is currently built in Thailand, China, and Mexico as well.

Judging by the popularity of the 2014 Mazda3 here in New Jersey, there is no reason to think that Mazda3 can’t aim for 4 million more. That’s not to say that the car won’t have some tough internal competition, however. Mazda3 and Mazda6 seem to be in a constant battle with one another for the latest headlines and awards. The highly-anticipated 2015 additions to the Mazda lineup are looking to commands some attention as well. The 2015 Mazda MX-5 Miata has a built-in cult following, and the first application of KODO and SkyActiv to the 2015 Mazda2 will make the subcompact an immediate contender.

For your chance to test drive Mazda3 and add to the growing total of 4 million worldwide, contact Mazda of Lodi today.