This is the terrifying moment a python crawled onto the bonnet of a moving car.

Driver, Khun Kitsana, and his wife, Donlaya, were travelling through Chonburi in eastern Thailand when they first noticed the snake’s head above the bumper.

They looked on nervously as the snake continued to crawl out from inside the machinery until it was sprawled on the body of the car with its tongue flicking in the breeze.

The snake is believed to have slithered inside the car’s engine overnight then emerged when the heat became too much after 90 minutes of driving.

Kitsana said: ''When I saw the snake I didn't know what do. I couldn’t slow down because there were cars behind. So I carried on driving and hoped for the best. I know snakes can get inside cars but I’ve never seen one come out while the car’s moving.''

Kitsana continued driving at around 40mph while the snake rested on the bonnet. Once the serpent had fully emerged, it began crawling over the left passenger window.

The driver then found a lay-by to park in and slowly pulled over. He watched as the python, estimated to be between 10ft and 12ft long, fell off and slithered away into the undergrowth at the side of the dual carriageway.

The incident happened in August last year.

Kitsana added: ''We set off from Bangkok at about 5.30 am and the snake came out at 6.50am. It had stayed inside the moving car for a long time. But I think it became too hot and had to come out for air.It could have attacked us if it had entered the car. I’m relieved it was not hurt though.''