New York guys make 'huge mistake' after spending $17,000 converting school bus into Fortnite Battle Bus
Published on Sep 01, 2025 at 12:28 PM (UTC+4)
by Molly Davidson
Last updated on Sep 01, 2025 at 6:16 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Emma Matthews
Two New York guys spent $17,000 buying a school bus with one goal: to transform it into the legendary Battle Bus from Fortnite.
On paper, the idea was golden.
But the second they grabbed paint cans, things went sideways.
So sideways in fact that they ended up using the entirely wrong color.
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Their mission: bring the Fortnite Battle Bus to life
The project was posted to Instagram by realbattlebuilds.
When every painter they called turned them down, the guys decided to take matters into their own hands.
With no training and just a YouTube tutorial for guidance, the learning curve was unsurprisingly brutal.
In an unfortunate mishap, the first coat they sprayed was gray. Worlds away from the shade of Fortnite blue they needed.
From there, everything else snowballed – the sprayer leaked, and their technique was, in their own words, ‘illegal in 17 different states.’
But instead of bailing, they doubled down.
After purchasing a new, far bluer shade and piling on layer after layer, the bus finally began to transform.
By the time the last coat dried, it really did look like the Battle Bus had come to life.
Though the comment section had some feedback.
“The paint job is messier than my actual Fortnite skills,” one person teased.
The most famous school bus in gaming
For anyone who doesn’t play Fortnite, the Battle Bus is where every game begins – a blue school bus with a giant hot-air balloon that floats players across the map before they drop in.
It’s as iconic to gaming as Mario’s Kart, or Halo’s Warthog.
And that kind of cultural pull is why Fortnite itself has stayed so dominant.
Years after launch, it’s still one of the most played games in the world, sitting alongside giants like Minecraft and GTA V.
And big money is betting it isn’t slowing down – in 2022, Sony and LEGO invested $2 billion into Fortnite’s creator, Epic Games, backing its future far beyond the game itself.
So it’s no surprise that a game as popular as Fortnite ended up at the center of a $17,000 garage project.
After a few wrong paint cans and a crash course in DIY, that New York school bus really does look the part.
Thousands of dollars later, these guys admit it nearly broke them, but the end result is unmistakable – a fitting tribute to one of the most recognizable rides in gaming.
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Molly Davidson is a Junior Content Writer at Supercar Blondie. Based in Melbourne, she holds a double Bachelor’s degree in Arts/Law from Swinburne University and a Master’s of Writing and Publishing from RMIT. Molly has contributed to a range of magazines and journals, developing a strong interest in lifestyle and car news content. When she’s not writing, she’s spending quality time with her rescue English staffy, Boof.
