The Targa Tasmania car rally has again been marred by a fatal crash, a year after a triple tragedy shocked the racing fraternity.
The death has prompted organisers to downgrade this year's race to a non-competitive tour event.
A 59-year-old Brisbane driver died when he and his wife crashed over a steep embankment on Olivers Road, Mount Roland, with their car coming to a stop against a tree 20 metres down.
The woman, also 59, received non-life-threatening injuries and was able to walk away from the crash.
She was taken to the Launceston General Hospital for observation overnight.
No names have been released.
Police Inspector Darren Hopkins said the crash was in a "very remote location" in northern Tasmania, and officials were using a crane to recover the car.
"We've got absolutely no idea at this point as to what caused the crash," he said.
"The crash investigators are at the scene now.
"The conditions aren't very conducive to getting photos and data from the road, so they'll be returning tomorrow and the following day to do a survey."
Targa Australia chief executive Mark Perry said he was "totally devastated by what happened".
"It's hard to put words to it for us right now, after last year and all the work we've done, after the 90-minute briefing we gave everyone the other day … we swing towards devastation and we've just got to accept the loss.
He said the pair were experienced racers and the course would have been very familiar to them.
"It's a long-term stage for us, it's not new, it's not unfamiliar to any of the competitors and particularly to this crew," Mr Perry said.
"It's not a new stretch of road, it's a well-known stretch of road."
Competition racing cancelled
In a statement overnight, Mr Perry said organisers had made the "difficult" decision to downgrade the race to a non-competitive tour event.
Cars will continue to drive on closed roads but will observe signposted speed limits.
Mr Perry said the move was necessary "so the incident could be fully investigated and understood".
"The change to downgrade the event to touring only was a difficult one for all of us to make but one that was necessary in the current circumstances as we work through this difficult time."
Motorsport Australia supported the organisers' decision.
In a statement, the director of Motorsport, Michael Smith, said the organisation would continue to offer support to "the entire Targa community, including officials and competitors".
"On behalf of everyone at Motorsport Australia, we offer our sympathies to those impacted by this tragedy," Smith said.
"We are now working closely with the Tasmanian police and emergency services, along with TARGA event organisers as the investigation into the incident begins."
Safety changes after 2021 deaths
The death comes a year after competitor Shane Navin died when his car crashed on a wet road at Mount Arrowsmith near Strahan.
The next day, Leigh Mundy and his co-driver Dennis Neagle were killed when their car hit a dip in the road and crashed into trees at Cygnet, in southern Tasmania.
Motorsports Australia investigated the deaths and handed down 23 recommendations, including changes to race routes, reducing speeds on some sections of the course, and reviewing telecommunications capacity.
Mr Perry said Wednesday evening's crash had not happened in a reduced speed zone.
A meet and greet in Launceston for competitors at the end of Wednesday's racing was cancelled after the crash.
About 500 cars are taking part in this year's event — a record field to mark the race's 30th year.
The six-day tarmac rally is set to finish in Hobart on Sunday.
