The owner of a Vauxhall Vectra watched his car burn after it caught fire as he was driving along the M1.
Fire crews rushed to the scene between junctions eight and nine of the motorway at about 4.20pm today (Wednesday).
Crew commander Sam Ledger said: “He was just driving along and suddenly lost power, heard a knocking sound coming from his engine and then it caught fire.
“He managed to salvage everything that was in his motor and then had to watch his car burn, basically.”
He said they put the flames out before they spread to the main body of the vehicle, but that it was a definite write-off.
He said: “It is quite rare that cars catch fire like that.”
The car dates back to 2006 or 2007, Mr Ledger said. The slow lane of the motorway was closed for about five minutes while his crew put the fire out.