Honda has unveiled a sporty new hybrid vehicle that will land in U.S. showrooms this summer, at least two years ahead of a similar prototype introduced by rival Toyota.

"Now, I know you've heard from others with plans to offer up a product in this new segment,' said American Honda Motor vice president John Mendel. "But this is a real car coming to you in just a few months."

The Honda CR-Z is a sporty two-seater designed to evoke memories of the Japanese automaker's popular but now defunct CR-X.

It will build on Honda's existing U.S. lineup of hybrid vehicles, the Civic and the Insight. The automaker also announced plans to add hybrids to its luxury Acura brand.

"CR-Z is an altogether new vision, a renaissance if you will, for a car of the future," Mendel said. "The CR-Z was developed for a more discerning customer who is seeking a unique combination of forward-looking style, fun-to-drive spirit, advanced safety and fuel efficiency."

Toyota, which is expected to introduce eight new hybrids in the next few years, introduced a prototype of a two-seater hybrid with somewhat less of a sporty style.

The FT-CH concept car is aimed at Toyota's strategy "to offer a wider variety of conventional hybrid choices to its customers," as it begins to introduce plug-in hybrids and battery-powered vehicles in global markets, the company said.

It is expected to go on sale in 2012.

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