How to Draw a Simple AND Realistic Bugatti

In this guide, I'm going to show you how I drew this realistic Bugatti Mistral in this beautiful light gold color.

The image above is actually not my first attempt. Sometimes drawings don't go the way I plan. In this case, the light gold color turned out to be more of a dark brown.

It still looked good, but I severely dislike brown cars... So I asked on my Instagram story what I should do and these are the results:

92 people (66%) said it looked amazing as it is.

48 people (34%) said I should redo it.

But before the results were in I had already made up my mind and redid the whole drawing. This time the Bugatti did turn out light gold instead of brown and in my opinion, it looks sooo much better.

Again I put up a poll on my story with the question of which one my followers liked most:

109 people (51%) liked the brown Bugatti Mistral more.

103 people (49%) liked the light gold Mistral more.

I really thought more people would like the gold more than the brown, but I was wrong. And as the opinions were so divided I decided to include how to achieve both colors in this tutorial.

The start of both drawings is the same. When you're ready to color the body (step 11) I divided the steps into 2 options: light gold and brown.

PS. I'd love to know which one you liked more. The gold one or the brown one? Leave a comment below!

Disclaimer: In the name of full transparency, please be aware that this blog post contains affiliate links and any purchases made through such links will result in a small commission for me (at no extra cost for you).

Now, without further ado, let's get started!

Drawing Supplies You Need for this Tutorial

To draw this Bugatti Mistral, I used the following art supplies:

• A4-sized Canson Illustration Manga paper (my favorite marker paper);

• A graphite pencil, a ruler, a kneaded eraser, and a regular eraser;

• Winsor & Newton Promarkers in the colors Ice Grey 1 (IG1), Ice Grey 2 (IG2), Ice Grey 4 (IG4), Ice Grey 7 (IG7), Blue Black (XBB), Black (XB), Warm Grey 3 (WG3), Warm Grey 4 (WG4), Warm Grey 5 (WG5), Midnight Blue (B624), Burgundy (R424), and Berry Red (R665);
• Copic Ciao markers in the colors Milky White (E51), Sand (E33), and *Caribe Cocoa (E25, only needed if you want to make the Bugatti brown).
  

• Derwent Coloursoft pencils in the colors White, Dove Grey, and Black;

• And a white Posca PC-3M.

Reference Photos I Used to Draw this Bugatti

To create the drawing of the Bugatti Mistral, I used 3 reference photos: 1 for the perspective and the proportions, 1 for the lighting and the reflections, and 1 for the color.

I used the photo below as a reference for the perspective and proportions.

I used the photo below (3rd slide) as a reference for the lighting and the reflections.

And I used the photos below as a reference for the color.

How Do You Draw a Bugatti?

When I draw a car like a Bugatti I first find a couple of reference photos I'm going to use. After that, I start sketching the outline of the car. I make sure the sketch is as good and accurate as possible before I move on to coloring.

Next, I start coloring. First, the pure black parts to make the drawing look less overwhelming, and then the rest of the car.

And lastly, I add a ton of details with a black, grey, and white colored pencils and a few white highlights with a Posca paint marker.

Step 1: Sketch the Outline of the Bugatti

The first step of drawing a Bugatti is sketching the outlines of the car. 

This is by far the most important step. If the sketch isn't accurate, your drawing won't look realistic in the end. So take your time and use a sketching technique to make this easier.

I like to use the grid method to make sketching the car easier and more precise. 

I first resized the reference photo I'm using for the proportions and perspective to A4 size (the same size as my paper). After that, I overlayed a grid of 15 by 10.5 squares which works well with my paper size.

Next, I replicate that same grid onto my paper. I only sketched the squares I needed for the drawing to save some time erasing the unnecessary lines.

When I was done, I started sketching the outline of the Bugatti Mistral. I started with the bigger shapes before adding more and more details.

Step 2: Color All Pure Black Parts

Now that the sketch is done it's time to start coloring the Bugatti.

To make the drawing look less complicated I like to color all pure black parts first.

Step 3: Color the Wheels of the Bugatti Mistral

Next, I like to start with the wheels. 

They can be a bit daunting, so we're getting them done right away.

I started by coloring both wheels with Ice Grey 4 except for the spokes.

Next, I colored the spokes of both wheels with Ice Grey 2 and I darkened some areas of the wheel with Ice Grey 7 and Blue Black. I also colored the tires with Ice Grey 7 and blended that into the black at the bottom with Blue Black and then Ice Grey 7 again.

Step 4: Color the Shadow Underneath the Bugatti

Now that the wheels are done, it's time to color the shadow under the Bugatti.

I first colored the outside edge of the shadow with Ice Grey 1.

After that, I used Ice Grey 4 to color the part in between the Ice Grey 1 and Black.

To finish it off, I used Ice Grey 2 to blend the edge between the IG1 and IG4 and I used Ice Grey 7 to blend the edge between the Black and IG4.

Step 5: Color the Side Skirt

Next up is the side skirt and lower half of the side of the car.

I started by coloring the smaller lighter reflection on the left with Ice Grey 2 and outlined it with Warm Grey 5.

Next, I colored the light reflection on the top half with Ice Grey 4 and I colored the rest with Ice Grey 7.

Then, I colored the French colors just behind the front wheel with Berry Red, Ice Grey 2, and Midnight Blue.

Lastly, I darkened 3/4 of the right side of the dark reflection with Blue Black and blended that into the dark grey with Ice Grey 7.

Step 6: Color the Front of the Bugatti

Next, I colored the front. 

I divided this section up into 3 parts as it's quite big.

I first colored the left side.

I first colored the whole left side with Ice Grey 2, except for the brown-grey reflection on the right. I used Warm Grey 5 to color that.

After that, I used Ice Grey 7 to color the left fin-shaped part as well as the reflection just below the black grill.

Next, I blended the dark grey reflection below the grill into the black with Blue Black and Ice Grey 7. I also added a Blue Black outline to the Warm Grey reflection on the right and I transitioned the light part around that into Ice Grey 4 and then Ice Grey 7.

After that, I colored the middle of the front.

I used Ice Grey 2 to color the front splitter and the aero parts just above that and I used Burgundy to color the logo.

Lastly, I colored the right part of the front.

I first colored it with Ice Grey 2. After that, I added a Blue Black reflection on the left coming from the grill. I also added a dark grey reflection on the right with Ice Grey 7.

Step 7: Color the Headlights of the Mistral

After coloring the front, I colored the headlights.

I first colored the lead strips in both headlights with Ice Grey 1. Next, I colored the remainder of the left headlight with Ice Grey 4 and the right headlight with Ice Grey 2.

After that, I added some dark spots with Ice Grey 7 to the left headlight and I used Ice Grey 4 and 7 to do the same on the right headlight.

Step 8: Color the Mirror Caps

Next up I colored the mirror caps.

I colored the cap of the left mirror and the left half of the right mirror with Blue Black. I colored the right half of the right mirror with Ice Grey 2.

Step 9: Color the Side Window of the Bugatti

The next thing I colored was the side window (and a few bits of the A-style and the left buttress).

I first fully colored the side window with Ice Grey 4 and I used Blue Black to color the A-style and the front of the buttress.

Next, I used Ice Grey 7 to darken the side window except for the edge of the seat and a bit above the mirror. I also colored the side of the buttress with IG7.

Step 10: Color the Windshield of the Bugatti Mistral

The last part that needs to be colored before we move on to the main body is the windshield.

I started by coloring the right side of the windshield with Ice Grey 1.

After that, I added some cloud-shaped reflections with Ice Grey 2. I also colored the inside edge of the right A-style with IG2 as well as the view through the rear on the left and the bottom of the right half of the windshield.

Next, I colored the rest of the windshield with Ice Grey 4 and added some more cloud-shaped reflections on the right.

And to finish it off, I used Ice Grey 7 to darken the lower left part as well as the top left. I also used Blue Black for the really dark parts on the bottom and top left.

Step 11: Color the Main Body of the Bugatti

Next, it's finally time to color the main body.

And as I drew this car twice, I decided to include both colors in this tutorial.

1. Light Gold
2. Brown

Just follow along with the one you like the most.

Option 1: Light Gold

I first colored the dark reflections (everything that doesn't reflect the sky) with Sand E33.

Next, I colored the remainder with Milky White E51. In some places, I layered this color multiple times to make it slightly darker.

After that, I used Warm Grey 3, 4, and 5 to make some parts of the reflections darker, mainly on the side and the left half of the front.

Option 2: Brown

To make the Bugatti brown, I first colored the lightest parts with Milky White E51.

Next, I colored the bits that were slightly darker with Sand E33.

After that, I colored the dark parts with Caribe Cocoa E25. I left the really dark parts uncolored for now.

Lastly, I colored the darker brown parts with a combination of Caribe Cocoa E25 and Warm Grey 3, 4, and 5.

Step 12: Add Details with Colored Pencils

Next up, I used Black, Dove Grey, and White Derwent Coloursoft colored pencils to add details to the car.

I refined the spokes with White and refined the shape of the spokes with Black. I added details to the headlights. I refined the cloud reflections on the windshield. For the Brown variant, I added grill details with Dove Grey and White.

Lastly, I added all the panel gaps with the Black pencil.

Step 13: Add White Highlights with a Posca Marker

To finish the drawing off, I used a White Posca PC-3M paint marker to add a few white highlights here and there.

And That's How I Draw Bugattis

I hope this helped you to create your own realistic Bugatti drawing!

I would love to hear some feedback from you. Was there anything I didný explain very well or something you didn't understand? Let me know by leaving a comment.

And if you followed along with me in this tutorial, I would love to see how your drawing turned out! So, if you decide to share it on Instagram, please tag me (@luukminkman).

One last thing. 

Could you help me out a bit? I'm trying to grow this blog, so I would really appreciate it if you could share this article (or any other article you like) with a friend. 

Thank you!!

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Luuk Minkman

Artist, Blogger and Coder

I'm an artist and I draw realistic cars with alcohol markers and colored pencils. I have been doing so for a decade now. On my blog, you can find all you need to know to learn how you can draw realistic cars yourself. I have studied at uni twice and also quit twice to pursue my dream of owning a Porsche 911 and a Ferrari 812. Let's hope this works out🤞. Follow me on Instagram.