Bay of Plenty police road policing manager Inspector Kevin Taylor said members of the public called police with reports of a girl car surfing on Amber Pl, a short cul-de-sac in the Homedale suburb.
He said thankfully the girl wasn't seriously hurt or killed.
"When you hear the phrase 'kids don't try this at home', this is one of those situations. If you are in Nitro Circus or are a professional stunt man, you can get away with it in a confined or controlled environment but riding on a bonnet of a car on a public road is really stupid. It's simple: car surfing is dumb and really dangerous."
A resident in the area, who didn't want to be named, said there were two "goons" in the car riding around the street with the girl on the bonnet.
"She comes off and head butts the road."
Mr Taylor said no one had been charged but inquiries into the incident were continuing.
He said it would be the driver of the vehicle, not the injured girl, who could be criminally liable.
"You can't car surf if no one is driving."
He said anyone charged in relation to car surfing faced penalties ranging from an infringement offence for driving in a manner likely to cause damage, injury or annoyance, which carried a $600 fine, to a Crimes Act offence of committing an unlawful act, which carried a maximum of three years' jail.
Car surfing incident
* 4pm Monday on Amber Pl, Rotorua
* 16-year-old girl taken to Rotorua Hospital with a head injury
* Police yet to make an arrest
