A massive king cobra was caught inside a car engine in Thailand.

The 12ft-long venomous snake slithered inside the SUV when the driver pulled over at a petrol station to buy drinks in Udon Thani province, on May 9.

It was first spotted by a worker who called the owner and contacted the local snake wranglers for help.

Footage shows the animal rescue volunteers searching for the snake and battling to secure it.

Shaken driver Dounphon Roadsri, 45, said: ‘I don’t know where the snake came from but it certainly wasn't from my home.

‘I think the snake entered while I was at the store and left my car outside.’

The team found the snake hiding under the engine and dragged it from a hole underneath. It tried to escape as it nearly slipped off the hands of one of the volunteers causing panic among onlookers but it was eventually secured.

The team then took the snake with them to release later into the wild.

The king cobra is a venomous snake species endemic to southern and Southeast Asia. It is the world’s longest venomous snake, with one of the largest on record captured in Thailand.