Police are thinking about appealing a judge's decision to acquit a teen of dangerous driving after he was clocked at 148kmh in an 80kmh area.

On Thursday a spokeswoman said police "will be considering the facts of this case before taking any further steps, which takes time".

The case in question is that of Napier student Kingston Webb, who on Tuesday was acquitted of the charge by Judge David Harvey in Napier District Court after a short judge alone trial.

Supplied Kingston Webb was clocked driving at 148kmh in his Suzuki Swift.

Webb, 18, was driving his Suzuki Swift north along State Highway 2, alongside the Hawke's Bay Airport at about 7.40pm on November 1 last year.

READ MORE:

* He might have been driving at 148kmh in an 80kmh area but it wasn't dangerous

* Speed kills - but not if you know the road?

* One man, two cases of high-speed dangerous driving on two different days

* Driver in fatal police pursuit 'motivated offender who did not want to be caught'

* Police pursuits: How New Zealand compares to Australia

He was clocked at 148kmh. After being pulled over by a police officer Webb was automatically suspended from driving for 28 days and charged with dangerous driving.

STUFF Webb was 68kmh over the 80kmh zone limit on State HIghway 2 just north of Napier.

Webb, who is studying law, told the court he knew the road well, travelling it 3-4 times a week and he was very familiar with road works in the area.

Judge Harvey acquitted Webb of the charge but amended it to one of driving at excessive speed. Webb was fined $400 and ordered to pay $130 court costs. He was not disqualified.

The judge, citing established case law, said speed alone was not sufficient to establish dangerous driving. He said the road was relatively straight, it was two lanes narrowing down to one, the seal was good, the road conditions were good, the car was a relatively late model and in good condition, there were no driveways or other roads opening onto the highway, no parked cars and there were no other vehicles in the immediate vicinity, the lighting was relatively good, and Webb was not driving erratically, Judge Harvey said.

GOOGLE The road is relatively straight and has a median barrier.

The Automobile Association said driving at 148kmh on any stretch of New Zealand road was dangerous.

Mark Stockdale, its principal adviser on regulations, said it seemed "an interesting decision", and appeared to be "based on a legal technicality based on these particular circumstances".

"That is a very high speed. It is dangerous. The consequences of something going wrong are very severe and likely to be fatal," he said.

SUPPLIED Judge David Harvey found Kingston Webb not guilty of driving at a dangerous speed.

Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency senior road safety manager Fabian Marsh would not comment on the case but said no roads in New Zealand were designed to safely accommodate very high speeds.

"If you crash at a very high speed, or if you are struck by another vehicle driving at very high speeds, the evidence tells us that you will almost certainly be seriously injured or killed. The human body is simply not designed to absorb the energy of a high speed crash, and even a car with the latest safety features is very unlikely to protect you from injury in such a violent crash," Marsh said.

*comments on this article have been closed