The pictured Volvo 850 2.5 SE caught fire in a northbound lane of the Eastern Distributor motorway, between Sydney Airport and the city near Wentworth Avenue junction.

Traffic came to a standstill as emergency services arrived.

Eyewitness Sergey Derevyanko of Miranda was on his way to work when he took this shot of the burning car.

"There was a car that caught fire, the whole engine was on fire,'' he said.

"The smoke was thick... I could see the whole engine blazing in flames and smoke.''

A NSW Fire Brigade spokesman said units from Botany and Mascot went to the scene at 9.11am.

Heavy traffic slowed their progress and the first crew arrived shortly before 9.20am.

They took 20 minutes to extinguish the flames while police diverted traffic.

An ambulance spokesman said no-one was injured.

Did you see the fire?