Rally car racers survive 160km/h flip

South African racers Matthew Vacy-Lyle and Schalk Van Heerden should buy a lottery ticket after escaping unscathed from a spectacular high speed crash during a South African rally event.

Competing in the Cullinan rally, race leaders Vacy-Lyle and Van Heerden flew over a jump during a desert section of the course at 160km/h when their Etios hit the ground nose first.

The impact sent the car into a terrifying cartwheel, flipping over side-to side and nose to tail at least six times before coming to rest on its roof.

With onlookers standing only metres away, the crash sent plumes of red sand flying and tore off pieces of the vehicle, leaving the rear section crushed.

Amazingly, the pair managed to climb from the wreckage, bruised and dazed, but otherwise unharmed.

Talk about a lucky escape.