Cold Start is a gritty drama in the tradition of Drive, Moonlight, Good Time, and El Camino. Donnini, a world-famous racecar driver, meets his unfortunate demise while on the track. However, his legacy lives on within a home project car that he and his young son, Carter, spent many years perfecting. Almost a decade after his father's death; the car sits untouched by Carter, however, the teen boy knows that the only way to move past the emotional damage that roots from his father's death is to continue his legacy by finishing the project car. In order to accomplish this, Carter must first turn the key.

After facing obstacles in terminating her unwanted pregnancy in her cruel homeland, Mowanza travels alone to Iropus for an abortion, armed only with her half-empty water bottle and a battered car.