Distressing moment a petrified Asian man is attacked by a gang in DC who try to drag him out of his car, beat him and throw liquid on him while he laughs.

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

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

The people in front of his car prevented him from getting out when one of the attackers opened the door and began hitting him.

The attacker then grabbed him by the legs and tried to pull him out of the car so the entire group could hit him to the ground.

The driver clung to his upholstery for dear life and managed to resist being dragged out, so the attackers began beating him again.

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

The video shows a woman in a pink jumper pouring liquid on the driver, before another man delivers another volley of punches as he begs them to stop.

A man claimed on Instagram that he was attacked because he was ‘recording my little sister’.

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

“I just had a faint moment… Yes, I was wrong and I also apologize (sic) to the man wherever he is,” she wrote, then deleted her account.

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

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