Lid lifted on fresh MX-5

The patent office is designed to protect company secrets, not leak them to the world! But that’s what has happened with these renderings of Mazda’s next MX-5.

An employee at the EU agency that registers trademarks – the Office of Harmonization for the Internal Market – unwittingly let these pictures loose. And in the process, they revealed the shape of the fresh two-seater.

At the front, the changes stick closely to Mazda’s latest design cues. The soft, rounded nose of the current car makes way for a sharper look, incorporating a more gaping and angular grille. And the headlights are swept back further up the bonnet.

Foglights take on more of a teardrop shape, which is echoed in the sharper lines of the front lip spoiler. Other changes include the moving of the indicator repeaters to behind the wheelarches.

The refreshed model is expected to arrive in showrooms early next year, with a full replacement scheduled for 2012.