Objective To investigate the changing law of mechanical responses of herniated lumbar intervertebral disc under automobile vibration. Methods Herniated and healthy intervertebral disc specimens were made using the sheep lumbar spines. The specimens were compressed in flexion/vertical posture to simulate the stress state of the driver’s lumbar spine in different sitting positions, and then the creep experiments were carried out on this basis. The viscoelastic mechanical behaviour of lumbar intervertebral discs during dynamic creep was described using a standard linear solid model, the dynamic creep strain, strain rate, elastic modulus were calculated, and the physical significance of the constitutive equations was analyzed. Results The dynamic creep strain of the herniated lumbar disc specimen was significantly larger than that of the healthy specimen, while the amplitude was basically unchanged; the vibration acceleration had basically no effects on the dynamic creep strain, while it had a significant effect on the amplitude; the forward flexion mode had a slight effect on the dynamic creep strain, while it had a significant effect on the amplitude. The results of the present constitutive equation calculations were in agreement with the results of the experimental tests. Conclusions This study provides important theoretical guidance for the prevention of low back pain diseases in car drivers.