A woman is fighting for life in hospital after a fiery Christmas Eve car crash in Melbourne which left three people dead.

A speeding Audi lost control on Palmers Rd in Point Cook and crossed onto the wrong side of the road, hitting a Honda Jazz at 7.30pm on Sunday.

The two people in the Audi and one woman in the Jazz were killed and the other woman was taken to hospital.

She remains in a critical condition at the Alfred Hospital, a spokeswoman has said.

“We’ve got two women in the Jazz, one of them is in the hospital fighting for life, this could be a quadruple fatality,” Assistant Commissioner Doug Fryer told reporters on Sunday night.

“They were probably heading home to wrap presents – one of them will never get to open them.

“You’ve got two others in the Audi who also won’t be there tomorrow with their family.”

“It’s clear to all of us that excessive speed is involved”: Police. Photo: AAP

Mr Fryer said it was clear the Audi was travelling well above the 70km/h speed limit.

“You’ve got a motor that’s been ripped out of the car, you’ve got the vehicle up on the barricade, and you’ve got a battery that’s a further 100 metres down the road, so the impact has been significant,” he said.

Major Collision investigators will examine the circumstances of the collision and a report will be prepared for the coroner.

So far in 2017, 251 people have died on Victoria’s roads.