I have a ‘96 626 with 180k miles that I have been trying to run into the ground for 4 years for an excuse to get something newer. Haven’t put a dime into it other than what it needs to pass inspection and it runs perfectly. I don’t even change the oil. Just got a new vehicle 2 weeks ago so now the Mazda is to be used as a spare, but that thing has been unbelievably reliable and easy for DIY work as well.
My dad had an early eighties B2000 pickup that was the same, very basic, manual choke. Couldn’t kill it. The body rusted out from under it eventually, after about twenty years of hard use. Mechanically it was still servicable. Parted it out after the floorboards got scary, sold the remaining carcas for scrap.
Their early Wankel engines were a little more difficult, though,