[Rania Elhoseny]

It's taken seven years and ten months, but Mazda has hit an important milestone in the production of its highly regarded Mazda3 compact car. On April 26, 2011, at its Hofu Plant in Yamaguchi, Japan, the three-millionth 3 rolled down the assembly line.

For those keeping track of such things, this makes the Mazda3 the fastest-selling nameplate in the automaker's current lineup. Over 1.1 million units have been sold in North America to date.

In addition to the Hofu plant, the Mazda3 is also built at the Changan Ford Mazda Automobile (CFMA) plant in Nanjing, China, and AutoAlliance in Thailand. Congrats on the achievement, Mazda, and here's looking forward to the next seven years and ten months of SkyActiv-powered Mazda3s.