A car had to be pulled out from the sea after the driver accidentally accelerated on a promenade and plunged into the sea in Thailand.

Seaside vendors were shocked after hearing a loud revving noise before the car splashed into the ocean in Petchaburi province, Thailand on December 19 afternoon.

The driver said he wanted to catch the best view of the sunset at Cha-am Beach but had accidentally hit the gas instead of the brakes while parking on the pavement.

Resident Udorn Pitakwong, 42, who was tending to his speedboat docked nearby, rushed to help the man who was still inside the car.

The vehicle was slowly sinking in water as the currents pulled it deeper into the sea so Udorn called for help. Several locals joined in the rescue effort.

He said: "It was an automatic car and it seems like he pressed the accelerator instead of the brake, or he was trying to become a boat and find some fish there."

Emergency services workers rushed to tie a thick rope on the car's wheel and attached it to a mini-truck that pulled it off the water.

The tourist was still inside the car as it was being pulled off the water, manoeuvring the steering wheel so it could be pulled up the rocky seaside.

Onlookers helped push the car back to safety and into a parking spot. The rescue operation lasted for an hour.

The driver was not injured but his car suffered water damage. The front and back bumpers were broken, including the engine that was submerged in water.

The tourist thanked locals who helped him and the car was towed to a mechanic shop for repair.