 I am a commuter but also a father with 2 smaller children and a wife.  Therefore, I needed something reliable that would handle the challenges of our lives.  With all the hoopla about this car, I expected to get almost 200,000 miles or 12 years of this vehicle, which I had purchased used at 30,000 miles for $12,000 almost 7 years ago (2008).  While the first four years were non eventful, the following three were very painful.  Specifically, the car would unexplainably turn off or, more commonly, just not start.  I changed the battery, everything.  I brought it to my mechanic; nothing.  I needed reliability and this car was unreliable.  I thought for a while that maybe this was a one shot experience.  Perhaps.  However, I found on the web similar stories of Mazda 3s from 2005 which suddenly don't start.  This makes me wonder.  At 143,000, I chose to give up.  I am selling the car via a trade in to a dealer and getting a 2005 Prius with 112K miles.