L-plater Kayla, 16, was driving her three teenage girlfriends when her car collided head-on with another vehicle at Telegraph Point early on Wednesday.

She had driven from her hometown of Griffith, in the NSW Riverina, almost 1000km away the day before.

Yesterday Kayla’s mum and dad, Adele and Rod, said their only daughter could “light up a room’’.

Her parents and brother had their worst fears confirmed when images of a wrecked car she’d been given for her 16th birthday flashed across their TV screen.

The popular girl has been remembered by family and friends as someone who took immense pleasure from other people’s happiness.

It was when she was with her parents, older brother John and family friends, that she was her happiest.

“She loved everyday, but she especially loved going on holiday to the Gold Coast with family,” Adele said.

The music-loving teenager was always the most excited person at the family’s Christmas celebrations and loved celebrating her friends’ birthdays even more than her own.

At 6am on Wednesday, her car carrying three friends – identified as Chevonne Wood, 17, Jasmin Seru, 17, and Maddison Gannon, 15 – collided with a blue Ford Falcon driven by an unidentified 40-year-old man, of Eungai Rail, on the Pacific Highway.

It was reported the Ford Telstar crossed over into the path of oncoming traffic and crashed while her passengers were sleeping.

The impact of the collision tore apart the driver’s side of the bonnet and sent the other vehicle careering off the road into a ditch.

The four survivors were flown by helicopter to Port Macquarie Base Hospital.

One girl was later transferred to John Hunter Hospital’s trauma unit in Newcastle.

All are in a stable condition.

Investigations are continuing into the crash.