Distressing moment petrified Asian man is attacked by gang in DC who try to pull him from his car, punch him and hurl liquid on him while laughing

A motorist was viciously attacked in his car by a group of men who punched him in the head a dozen times before a woman poured liquid on him.

The man was ambushed on U Street in downtown Washington, D.C., as he was stuck in traffic on Wednesday night.

He was prevented from leaving by people standing in front of his car as one of the attackers pulled open the door and started punching him.

The assailant then grabbed his legs and tried to pull him out of the car so the whole group could bash him on the ground.

The driver held on to his upholstery for dear life and managed to resist being dragged out, so the attackers just started punching him again.

The first one was joined by a second, and he then leaned inside the car and ganged up on the driver who desperately tried to protect his face with his hands.

The video cut to a woman in a pink jumper pouring liquid on the driver, before another man landed another flurry of blows as he begged them to stop.

A man claimed on Instagram that the man was attacked because he was 'recording my little sister.'

However, he later made another post retracting her accusation and confirming the driver did nothing to deserve the beating.

'I just had a black out moment... Yeah I was wrong and I apologize too (sic) the man wherever he's at,' he wrote, later deleting his account.

U Street is a popular nightlife district dotted with bars, restaurants and nightclubs but was also the scene of recent shootings.

Police said the man did not file a police report so it had no information about the attack. They appealed for anyone with information to contact them.