Wellington, March 1 NZPA - A Taranaki woman has lost her appeal against her murder conviction for killing her ex-partner after she drove 13km, at speeds of up to 120kmh, with him clinging to the bonnet before smashing head on into a 4WD.

The Court of Appeal today dismissed Cindy Fairburn's appeal. She claimed the jury in her trial was not allowed to consider self-defence because she feared violence from her former partner and the crash was an accident.

Fairburn was last year sentenced to life in prison with a non-parole period of 10 years.

On August 6, 2007, she was behind the wheel of her car while her former partner Darin (Nardy) Maxwell, 42, clung to the bonnet for some 13km between Inglewood and New Plymouth, until the car swerved into the path of a 4WD, killing Mr Maxwell. It was estimated the car was travelling at about 90kmh.

Fairburn said she suspected Mr Maxwell had molested their two-year-old daughter but no evidence was found to support that.

The Court of Appeal said today that self-defence was not an option for Fairburn and the jury in her trial was correctly instructed and was satisfied as to the requisite intent for murder.

Fairburn was seriously injured in the accident and had a leg amputated due to a complication in her recovery.