Dead woman in car died of asphyxiation

A woman found dead in her car in a south Auckland street on Friday died of asphyxiation, police say.

Detective Senior Sergeant Peter Jones said the death was being treated as suspicious.

Mr Jones was not prepared to name the woman as it was not clear whether all family members had been notified, but she was in her mid-30s, he said.

Police are appealing to anyone who saw the woman's champaign coloured four-wheel-drive vehicle in the East Tamaki and Dannemora areas on Friday morning.

A post-mortem carried out over the weekend revealed she had died of asphyxiation, the cause of death police had initially suspected, Mr Jones said.

The woman had not been dead long when police arrived after being notified by a member of the public that a woman was sitting motionless behind the wheel of a car.

Police were speaking to people who had recently been in contact with the woman.

- NZPA