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CUMBERLAND, R.I. -- Two teenage boys who aren't yet old enough for a driver's license built their own electric-powered car to drive home a point about energy efficiency and technology.

Patrick Collins of Attleboro and Jarred Lorusso of Wrentham, both 13, converted a 1998 Saturn from a gasoline engine to an electric motor with help from their parents and local mechanics employed by the father of one of the boys.

The seventh-grade classmates at Mercymount Country Day School built the car as part of a long-term science project.

"Not a lot of people get to say they built their own car," said Lorusso, son of Gerard and Leslie Lorusso. "I think that's pretty awesome."

Collins, the son of Matthew Collins and Marianne Doran-Collins, conceived the idea after finding a book on the subject on his teacher's desk. The young automaker said he and his partner learned a lot about renewable energy and how America could save vast amounts of fuel by converting cars to electric propulsion.

Collins and Lorusso worked on the project for more than a year with mechanical help from their fathers and automotive experts at Lorusso Corp., which Lorusso's parents own. Experts from an electric vehicle company in New Hampshire also helped with parts and advice.

Both teens are students of science teacher John Mongillo, who encouraged the boys to follow their dream. The Macari Science Fund, established to help Mercymount students pursue green energy projects, extended a loan to help the teenagers purchase the used Saturn for $1,700.

Altogether, the boys said, the project cost about $10,000 to complete.

The students are planning to auction off the car to repay the costs.

The shiny green Saturn, purchased off a North Attleboro used car lot, is no NASCAR racer with a maximum speed of 60 mph and 40 miles between charge-ups for its 10 onboard batteries.

But the little sedan more than makes up for its lack of acceleration with huge savings in fuel usage, costs and pollution, the young automakers' calculate.

Over the estimated 17-year-life of a car, switching from gasoline fuel to electric power would cut fuel costs from a total of $33,788 to less than $10,000, Collins said.

The estimated savings of about $25,000 is far more than enough to justify the cost of converting the car to electricity, the boys calculate.

In addition to cutting the cost of operating a vehicle, Collins pointed out that electric propulsion could ease America's dependence on foreign oil and cut down on pollutants that cause smog. The boys, who kept careful track of the time and expense that went into their project, said about 86 hours were required to convert the car from gas to electricity. Costs would have been much higher, Lorusso said, had the pair needed to hire outside experts to help them with their project.

"The overall concept isn't that complicated," Lorusso said. "The mechanical aspect is another matter."

Lorusso's and Collins' parents said they were impressed with the boys' drive in researching and completing the project, although it seemed an ambitious undertaking at the start.

"These boys are always coming up with interesting ideas," said Collins' mom, Marianne Doran-Collins. "They just kept moving forward."

Lorruso's dad, who got to drive the Saturn prior to a formal presentation before classmates and the news media earlier this week, said the electric car "drove fine."

"I'm really proud of the boys for what they did," he said. "I think it's important for the next generation to get some grease under their fingernails."

RICK FOSTER can be reached at 508-236-0360 or at rfoster@thesunchronicle.com.