Pictured: Popular student, 18, who died when his car slammed into a tree

A southeast Melbourne teenager who was killed in a serious car crash, which left another teen hospitalised, has been identified as 18-year-old Hector Ryan.

Hector, from Glen Iris, died after losing control of his car and crashing into a tree on Moira Street, Malvern East on Friday about 1am, Fairfax reports.

His passenger, also 18, suffered minor injuries and was hospitalised. Hector died at the scene.

A St Kevin’s College student, Hector was due to graduate from high school in weeks and had been studying for his final exams.

Friends and school colleagues have paid tribute to Hector on social media, sharing a status that reads, “We are all brothers” with love heart emojis and the school’s colours, News Corp reports.

His friends remembered him as kind and responsible. He also had a passion for rowing outside of his studies, which one of his friends said he’d been doing since his early teens.

“He has been rowing since he was in year 8,” they told the Herald Sun.

“It was his life.”

A student at Sacre Couer, a nearby girl’s school, said “everyone loved Hector”.

Hector’s father was at the crash scene on Friday morning. He was comforted by friends and family as people laid flowers near the base of the tree that claimed his son's life.

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Some of the teen’s friends said he was close to completing his schooling and had planned to go camping in Yea, north of Melbourne, over the weekend to celebrate before heading to Byron Bay next week.

Investigators believe Hector lost control, causing the car to leave the roadway and smash into a tree.

Police are investigating if speed and weather conditions were contributing factors in the crash.