The Tricolor, a Norwegian-registered car carrier, had 2,862 motor cars on board and 77 containers when it collided with the Kariba, a container ship, 30 miles east of Ramsgate, the UK Dailymail reported.

The Tricolor had picked up its cargo in Zebrugge, Belgium and was on its way to Southampton, said Per Ronnevig, spokesman for its owners, shipping firm Wilhelmsen Lines.

Mr Ronnevig said, "We do not yet have a figure for the value of the cargo. We are working on the figures now. It will be several million dollars certainly.

"The ship was carrying new cars but we are not sure what make they were yet."

The Tricolor, built in 1987, collided with the Kariba, a Bahamas-registered ship at about 1.30am last night, in thick fog east of Ramsgate, Kent. The Tricolor, weighing nearly 50,000.

A spokesman for Dover Coastguard said the crew of the Tricolor were forced to abandon ship. There were no reports of injuries.

Its Captain, a Norwegian, cargo captain, a Swede and its 22 Filipino crew had to scramble into lifeboats as the ship went down.

They were then picked up and taken to Dunkirk, and coastguards in France reported all the men, "safe and sound".

The Kariba, which was severely damaged, is now making for port, and the crew are believed to still be on board.