Two alleged hijackers were killed during a shoot-out with police on New Eisleben Road in Nyanga on Wednesday afternoon, Cape Town police said.

Superintendent Andre Traut said the two men who were shot dead were with a 25-year-old man who was arrested after he was wounded in the leg and another suspect who managed to get away.

Patrolling police in the area had spotted a suspicious-looking Toyota Corolla with four men in it.

The police checked the registration of the vehicle. They found it belonged to a car rental company and suspected it could have been stolen.

When the officers tried to pull the men over, the driver accelerated for some distance before he stopped.

Two armed men got out of the car and allegedly pointed their firearms at the officers who were chasing them but the police retaliated and fatally wounded the suspects.

A third man who tried to get away was shot in the leg while the other one managed to escape.

Traut confirmed that the vehicle was stolen and two illegal firearms were found in the suspects' possession.

A case of possession of a stolen vehicle and illegal firearms was opened.