Senior Sergeant Mel Aitken, of Dunedin, said the woman died after her Honda Prelude crashed into a power pole in Bush Rd in Mosgiel about 9.30pm on Christmas Eve.
She was the sole occupant of the vehicle and was pronounced dead at the scene.
Snr Sgt Aitken said the crash was on a straight stretch of road, and its cause was unknown.
The police serious crash unit was investigating.
Dunedin police are searching for the occupants of a blue vehicle with a ''big bore exhaust'', which may have come across the crash scene but failed to stop and render assistance.
''It is essential that these occupants are spoken to in order to clarify what has occurred,'' Snr Sgt Aitken said.
• Manukau police are investigating a hit and run which killed a 40-year-old man just after midnight yesterday.
The man wandered into Helvetia Rd in Pukekohe, South Auckland, when he was hit by a car, police said.
The vehicle left the scene.
Police yesterday called for the driver to come forward.
The holiday road toll started at 4pm on Friday and runs until 6am on January 5.
Last year, 13 people died on the road during the holiday period.
