No injuries after truck fire in Kitchener
Thick black smoke filled the sky after a vehicle caught fire in Preston.
Thick black smoke filled the sky after a vehicle caught fire in Preston.
No injuries were reported after a truck caught fire in Kitchener's east end Friday afternoon.
Emergency crews responded to the blaze at 807 King St. E. shortly after 1:17 p.m., according to Platoon Chief Shane Waters of the Kitchener Fire Department.
The fire originated in the truck's engine compartment, though the exact cause remains unknown.
A second vehicle sustained minor damage as a result of the fire. Firefighters cleared the scene with Waterloo Regional Police after extinguishing the flames.
Only one station responded to the call. No further updates have been provided.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
National Post
2 hours ago
- National Post
Clutch Launches First Permanent Customer Hub in CF Markville Mall
Article content TORONTO — Clutch, Canada's fastest-growing online used car retailer, announces the opening of its first Customer Hub inside Cadillac Fairview Markville Mall (5000 Hwy 7, Markham, ON). This opening marks a significant milestone in Clutch's mission to make buying and selling pre-owned cars easier, more convenient, and more accessible for all Canadians. To celebrate the grand opening, Clutch has partnered with Andrea's Cookies to give away custom treats to anyone who stops by on Sunday, June 15th, for the grand opening. Strategically located in one of the Greater Toronto Area's busiest shopping centres, this inaugural Customer Hub will serve as a dedicated pick-up and drop-off point for customers buying or selling through It offers a physical touchpoint in an otherwise digital-first experience, bridging the gap between online convenience and in-person service. 'This space is about giving our customers more choice and flexibility,' said Dan Park, CEO of Clutch. 'While most of our customers love the ease of buying a car entirely online, some value having a physical space where they can interact with our team. Our new Customer Hub brings the best of both worlds together, and is a place where technology and human connection meet.' Article content Services Offered Include: Article content Convenient Pick-Up and Drop-Off: This location will serve as a centralized hub for customers to pick up or drop off vehicles purchased or sold through streamlining the handoff experience. On-Site Support from Clutch Experts: Friendly and knowledgeable Clutch experts will be available on-site to facilitate vehicle hand-offs and ensure a smooth and seamless experience. Guided Digital Shopping: Customers can browse Clutch's full online inventory using dedicated in-store computers, with staff available to assist in navigating listings, comparing vehicles, and answering any product-related questions. Customer Education and Guidance: Clutch experts will provide in-person guidance on the digital car-buying process. Article content While the core focus is convenience, the physical presence helps reinforce Clutch's commitment to transparency, trust, and customer support—hallmarks of the brand's customer-first approach. Article content For more information, visit or stop by the grand opening on June 15th. Article content About Clutch: Article content Founded in 2016, Clutch is Canada's leading online retailer for pre-owned vehicles. Clutch aims to provide an incredible car buying experience for its customers by bringing a best-in-class e-commerce experience to the Canadian pre-owned car industry. By visiting customers can browse a large selection of high-quality vehicles at low prices and access an end-to-end online purchase experience which includes financing, insurance, and seamless home delivery. Clutch ensures complete peace of mind with each car being backed with a standard 10-day money back guarantee and 210-point inspection. Clutch is headquartered in Toronto and services Ontario and Nova Scotia, with sell-side services also available in British Columbia. Article content Article content Article content Article content Contacts Article content For media inquiries, please contact: Article content Article content Category Communications Article content
National Post
5 hours ago
- National Post
EVs Like VinFast's VF 8 Are Earning Their Place in Family Life
Article content MARKHAM, Ontario — Electric vehicles like the VinFast VF 8 are becoming trusted members of family life, proving their reliability not in specs but in how they support everyday journeys, long or short. Back in 2024, Michael took his family on a trip from Montreal to Orlando, with an all-electric car from VinFast, the mid-sized SUV VF 8. Along the way, they ran into several hiccups: broken charging stations, traffic accidents, and detours that stretched well past midnight. But in the end, Michael was satisfied with how the VF 8 handled it all. The air conditioning worked through southern heat waves. The quiet cabin let them talk normally during long stretches of highway. Article content 'I had no issues at all with the vehicle,' said Michael after the 5,000-km round trip, a journey long enough to show what a car is really made of. Article content Article content Michael's experience reflects how today's electric vehicles are changing the way families travel, plan, and spend time together, becoming trusted companions that both give and receive care. Article content The quiet revolution in family cars Article content Something fundamental is changing in how families view electric vehicles. They're no longer experimental gadgets for early adopters. Families trust them, even on their longest journeys. The transformation happens gradually, almost invisibly. Article content Consider what can make family travel stressful. Engine noise that drowns out conversations. Vibrations that wake sleeping children. Exhaust fumes at rest stops. Electric vehicles eliminate these irritations one by one. Kids can sleep better during long drives due to the smooth-operating electric motor. Conversations flow naturally in the quiet cabin. Charging stops often coincide with meal breaks anyway. Article content Now, families don't just use their EVs. They count on them. They plan around them. The cars become trusted partners in daily life. Article content Michael's Orlando adventure wasn't his first long trip, but it marked a memorable milestone, more so because the all-wheel-drive VF 8 delivered. 'The VinFast was very comfortable, especially the rear seats. The air conditioning and ventilated seats were top-notch,' he noted. Article content The journey had its challenges, but Michael adapted quickly. Most importantly, the electric car from the best-selling car manufacturer in Vietnam, never let his family down when it mattered. Article content Jean-Philippe's Gaspésie trip with a trailer tells a different but equally compelling story about the VF 8. Towing the majority of 2,800 kilometers would stress any vehicle, but the vehicle handled mountain passes and highway speeds without hesitation. 'The car handled really well with the trailer, powerful going uphill and during passing,' he observed. Article content His most dramatic moment came at the final charging stop. Arriving with just 1% battery and 4 kilometers of range. 'Let's just say we were running on electron fumes,' said Jean-Philippe. But the VF 8 made it. The family reached home safely, with memories of a successful adventure. Article content Built for family life Article content The VF 8's design reflects how families actually use their vehicles. Spacious rear seats accommodate car seats, teenagers, or grandparents with equal comfort. Article content Jean-Philippe's towing experience proves the VF 8's versatility extends beyond daily commuting. Families with boats, trailers, or recreational equipment can rely on electric power for their adventures. The smooth acceleration and instant torque make highway merging and mountain climbing less stressful for drivers. Article content Equipped with advanced driver assistance that help reduce fatigue during long trips, parents can focus more attention on their passengers and less on constant steering corrections. Article content VinFast also offers one of the longest warranties in the car industry, covering the VF 8 for ten years or 200,000 kilometers, with unlimited kilometers on the battery under normal usage. The VF 8's dual-motor all-wheel-drive system ensures confident handling in various conditions, while offering a practical range of up to 412 kilometers per charge. Article content At charging stations, Michael's VF 8 even attracted curious onlookers and received questions about the vehicle. Early adopters like him have become informal ambassadors for the VinFast brand and the broader electric vehicle wagon, sharing real experiences rather than marketing claims. Article content Stories like Michael's and Jean-Philippe's illustrate how electric vehicles can become part of everyday life. Not through specifications or incentives, but through reliability when families need it most. Greener transportation may be the goal, but a welcome side effect of EVs like the VinFast VF 8 is how they create more quality family time on the road. Article content Article content Article content Article content Article content Article content
Globe and Mail
5 hours ago
- Globe and Mail
Access to Tesla's Supercharger network makes Nissan Ariya's ho-hum range more useable
Nissan pioneered the modern electric vehicle when it launched the Leaf in 2011, yet it took more than a decade to add a second all-electric model to its portfolio. Originally expected in 2021, the Ariya was delayed by the pandemic until late 2022, when it launched in Canada as a 2023 model. Ordinarily, we wouldn't revisit a vehicle less than three years into its lifecycle but, in the Ariya's case, my curiosity was piqued by a new feature for 2025 – access to Tesla's Supercharger network. Other automakers are also adding Supercharger compatibility to their EVs, but this was my first opportunity to experience plugging a non-Tesla vehicle into a Tesla charger. The enabler on the Ariya is an adapter that mates Tesla's North American Charging Standard (NACS) plug to the CCS1 port used on Ariya and most other non-Tesla EVs. Starting later this year, Nissan says a NACS port will become standard on future Nissan EVs, including the next-generation Leaf. Nissan charges $309.99 for the adapter and, if you're tempted by a cheaper aftermarket alternative, note the Nissan small print: 'The NACS Adapter Kit provided by Nissan or purchased from a U.S. or Canadian Nissan Dealership is deemed by Nissan as the only compatible adapter for Nissan EVs … Use of an adapter that is not a Nissan-compliant NACS Adapter is strictly prohibited.' The adapter is a black plastic device, roughly the size of a 500-gram baking soda carton, which you carry in the vehicle and plug in as needed. Additionally, a much smaller plastic piece is supplied that gets permanently pushed into the hourglass-shaped opening in the lower part of the CCS1 port. As for the network, the NACS capability adds about 17,800 chargers in Canada and the U.S. to the existing Nissan Energy Charge Network (NECN). In Canada, this network includes ChargeHub, Shell Recharge, Flo, Chargepoint, Circuit Electrique, BC Hydro and IVY. That brings the NECN charger count to more than 25,000 in Canada alone. As with those networks, Supercharging is controlled and billed through the MyNissan smartphone app. Pricing is set by Tesla and varies according to location, time-of-use and possibly other factors not revealed on the Tesla app. The new 32-charger Tesla station I used in south Mississauga billed $35.82 (including taxes and fees) to add 50 kilowatt-hours and 250 kilometres of range on a Sunday evening and $11.69 to add 30 kilowatt-hours and 136 kilometres on a Tuesday morning. The first thing I learned at that Supercharger station is that the cables are short. I had to angle the Ariya close so the cable could reach the car's charge port. The adjoining bays were empty on that occasion, but it could get tight if they were occupied. My first 'hook-up' was just for photography, a decision that went pear-shaped when I wanted to disconnect and couldn't. Normally, tapping 'end charge' on the app unlocks the connector but because I hadn't started a charge, I had to Google another way to unlock a DC fast charger from an Ariya. (The solution: exit vehicle, close all doors, hit 'lock' on key fob, then 'unlock' twice). While Tesla chargers promise up to 250 kilowatts, the Ariya's maximum DC charging rate is 130. In practice, when I started a charge at 32-per-cent state of charge, the Ariya took 79 kilowatts and predicted 20 minutes to 80 per cent and 70 minutes to 100 per cent. The NACS-ready 2025 Ariya is available in single-motor/front-wheel-drive or dual-motor/all-wheel drive (e-4ORCE) versions, each with a choice of 63- or 87-kilowatt-hour (useable) battery packs. Starting prices range from $49,998 to $61,998, while the big-battery e-4ORCE can be optioned with Platinum+ or Premiere packages that add $3,000 or $4,200 respectively. Official range numbers span from 330 kilometres for the small-battery AWD to 465 for the big-battery FWD model. Over a week of mostly-highway driving in mid-April with the heating off most of the time, the projected range for the big-battery AWD test sample varied between about 380 and 420 kilometres. (Official range is 414 kilometres with the optional 20-inch wheels). You can get an Ariya with more range, though at a price: the front-wheel-drive model with the bigger battery (465 kilometres of range) includes more bells and whistles than the base model (348 kilometres) and costs $10,000 more. However much – or little – range you can afford, access to Tesla Superchargers makes longer trips that much more do-able. 2025 Nissan Ariya Evolve+ e-4ORCE Curiously, the Ariya is officially classified as a station wagon but its dimensions match a typical compact SUV – albeit one with a coupe-esque silhouette. The 0.3 drag coefficient is commendable, though optional 20-inch wheels (19s are standard) trim the official range to 414 kilometres from 430. The minimalistic elements of the cockpit are well assembled, with interesting combinations of materials. Comfortable seats with an extensive range of adjustment allow a tall-in-saddle posture for those who need or want it and good sightlines in all directions except through the shallow rear screen. Twin freestanding 12.3-inch displays are integrated in what Nissan calls a 'wave-like shape,' while separate haptic icons are used for climate control. The floor is flat, with no centre tunnel, the drive-selector toggle switch sitting on a floating, power-sliding centre console/armrest. Rear-seat space is somewhat below par for Ariya's size class and the high floor forces adults into a knees-up or knees-splayed posture. Typical of most newer-model EVs, the Ariya's initial launch feels artificially moderated, presumably to avoid the potentially neck-wrenching lunge of a powertrain that develops its maximum torque at zero rpm. Even so, the 290-kilowatt e-4ORCE is good for a feisty zero-to-100-kilometre-an-hour sprint in the low-five-second range. When the road takes a turn, the Ariya corners well, but lifeless steering makes it a less-than-engaging experience and on the (optional) 20-inch wheels, I found the ride rather stiff. Conversely, a rather soft brake pedal is a subjective demerit, while the Ariya offers only one fairly mild – albeit easy to adapt to – level of additional regenerative braking. All Ariya's include a suite of hands-on-wheel assisted driving features that include lane following, adaptive cruise control with stop and hold, plus automatic speed adjustment for curves, off-ramps or changing speed limits. The Platinum package adds a camera-based video rear-view mirror and automated parking. Connectivity assets include Amazon's Alexa, USB-A and USB-C ports plus wireless phone charging. CarPlay is wireless but not Android Auto. Cargo volumes of 645 litres with seats-up and 1,690 with seats-down are competitive with rival BEV compact crossovers but well below most gas-powered alternatives. The 60/40-split rear seatbacks fold flat and there's some additional under-floor space, but no frunk. The 2025 Ariya is a nice BEV, not a great one, but access to Tesla Superchargers makes its ho-hum electric range more useable in the long run. Shopping for a new car? Check out the new Globe Drive Build and Price Tool to see the latest discounts, rebates and rates on new cars, trucks and SUVs. Click here to get your price.
