--- title: "Car Design 101: Learn From the Pros With This Free Online Course" description: "This free online course from the Peterson Automotive Museum will allow anyone to learn about car design from actual designers in the industry." date: "2022-12-05" modified: "2022-12-05" authors: - name: "Nico DeMattia" job_title: "Contributing Writer" link: "https://www.thedrive.com/authors/nico-demattia" url: "https://www.thedrive.com/news/car-design-101-learn-from-the-pros-with-this-free-online-course" categories: - "Culture" - "News" --- # Car Design 101: Learn From the Pros With This Free Online Course ![]() It's easy to criticize certain modern car designs—like the [BMW M4's ]()irradiated beaver grille or the yawn-inducing [VW]() ID.4—and think you could do better. Think you can do better? Here's your chance. The world-famous [Petersen Auto Museum]() partnered with Yellowbrick to offer a free online automotive design course with some of the industry's best car designers teaching students. The course is broken down into three self-paced modules, and each module is broken down into smaller, 6-15 minute lessons. The first module is called "Design Principles & History," and it teaches students the core of automotive design while also looking at historical trends. The second module is "Famous Case Studies," which will highlight specific designs throughout history and review them. Lastly, the "Let's Draw!" module will teach students to sketch cars with Roman Yneges, who's a teacher at the ArtCenter College of Design in Pasadena, California. Most of the instructors in this course are currently automotive designers, such as Stellantis Chief Design Officer Ralph Gilles, Chrysler Brand CEO Christine Feuell, Tesla's Chief Designer Franz von Holzhausen, and Hispano Suiza Design Director Francesc Arenas. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FWdZ3F-ECe0&t=2s The course is free, and anyone can join. The only requirements are that you need to have sketching materials for the third module. Aside from that, you can start learning car design now. You don't even need to be looking for a career in automotive design to appreciate this course. Even just as a car enthusiast, it's interesting to learn about what goes into making a great car design. Studying cars like the Giugiaro-penned DeLorean, learning how to do retro right with the 2005 Ford Mustang, or seeing how Tesla made EVs stylish can all be fun learning experiences. Designing cars isn't just about sketching something pretty. Mechanical packaging, crash testing, and pedestrian safety are all restrictions that designers have to work around, and it can be fascinating to learn how they manage those. Forums and comments sections are awash with armchair designers who think they can do better than the artists who studied automotive design for years. However, after this course, maybe some of them will actually be able to. Is the next Marcello Gandini, Bruno Sacco, or Ian Callum out there, unknowingly waiting for their chance to prove themselves? This course might be the perfect way to find out. *Got tips? Send 'em over to tips@thedrive.com* ## Author Nico is a writer and reviewer from New Jersey who probably thinks he’s a lot funnier than he actually is. His love of cars began when he was just a kid playing Gran Turismo 3, grinding out enough race wins with a Mazda Miata to save up for an in-game RUF 911. That passion for small, lightweight sports cars drove his desire to learn more about the industry, get his hands on as many cars as he could, and bring those experiences to life on the page. He cut his teeth writing about BMWs, Volkswagens, and Audis, mostly, and has owned far too many of each. He’s on his fourth 3 Series sedan, but all of his old, cheap German cars have forced him to learn more about car maintenance than his mechanical capability can handle. Too many late nights have been spent scrambling to get a car running by morning so he could get to work. For some reason, he never seems to learn that old Bimmers probably aren’t the best daily drivers. But he loves more than just old German cars. He’ll gladly drive and discuss anything with four (or even three) wheels. Cars aren’t his only passions, though. Nico is also a big nerd and loves movies, video games, comic books, and cares far too much about the New York Giants. So don’t be surprised if you see football references or dumb, obscure movie quotes in any of his car reviews. ### Author social links [Instagram]() [LinkedIn]()