[5][6] The movie opens with Koichiro Iketani driving a lime green Nissan Silvia S13 home on Mount Akina, where he witnesses an impromptu battle between Keisuke Takahashi of the Akagi RedSuns, driving a yellow Mazda RX-7 FD and a mysterious Panda Black/White Toyota Sprinter Trueno AE86 (known simply as the "Eight-Six"), which outmaneuvers and defeats Keisuke.

During their practice, the inept SpeedStars are outmaneuvered by the RedSuns' advanced driving techniques; however, this does not stop Iketani from attempting to keep up.

The next day, Iketani's boss, Yuichi Tachibana, reveals that the Eight-Six is a tofu delivery vehicle owned by Bunta Fujiwara, Takumi's father.

Bunta eventually accepts, but under the condition that Takumi must go to Akina on Saturday night and defeat Keisuke in a downhill race.

Unbeknownst to everyone else, it was Takumi who defeated Keisuke at that first encounter as he was returning home from the morning delivery run.

Eventually, Takumi overtakes and defeats Keisuke by hooking his tires in the inside gutter at the five consecutive hairpins.

In a post-credit scene, a black Nissan Skyline GT-R R32, driven by the Myogi NightKids' Takeshi Nakazato, storms up Akina looking for Takumi's Eight-Six.

Meanwhile, Yuichi Tachibana overhears the situation and tells the Akina SpeedStars why Takumi refuses to race.

They are then ambushed by a posse of NightKids led by Nakazato's teammate, Shingo Shoji, and his red Honda Civic SiR II EG6.

The next day, the film ends with Takumi receiving a bouquet of flowers at work, along with a card addressed to "Panda Trueno", which then happens to be a formal challenge issued from Ryosuke Takahashi.

That same night, his father, Bunta Fujiwara, drives the Eight-Six with Yuichi Tachibana to test his newly tuned suspension in preparation for the battle.

The next night, Ryosuke Takahashi downgrades his white Mazda RX-7 FC3S to 260 hp, which he believes would give him the advantage and power he needs to defeat Takumi.

While there, they witness an impromptu battle between Takumi's previous rivals, Keisuke Takahashi and Takeshi Nakazato.

Eventually, at the Five Consecutive Hairpins, Takumi becomes overpressured, and enters the corner too fast, making him lose control, and allowing Ryosuke take the lead.

Ryosuke's tires cause him to slide outwards, allowing Takumi to take the inside and win the race.

In a post-credits scene, Ryosuke is seen inviting Takumi to a battle as invitation to join Ryosuke's new team, Project D. A recap of the movie trilogy with additional scenes of the characters test driving their cars, focusing only on the races much like the original Battle Stages.

The film series uses a J-rock soundtrack that plays during race sequences, instead of the Eurobeat that was featured in the original anime.