- North Carolina resident Michael Cusick and his Rivian R1T got caught in Hurricane Helene last week.
- Cusick said his R1T not only survived but became an essential tool to help affected families.
Michael Cusick used to be a diehard Tesla fan, telling Business Insider that he had a beloved Model 3 and "traveled the country in that girl."
But his experience with his Rivian R1T EV truck following Hurricane Helene — a storm that ravaged the southeast, including Cusick's home in Asheville, North Carolina — has cemented his position as a new Rivian convert.
"I'd say absolutely I have been converted from a Tesla fan," Cusick, 28, told BI in an interview. "I'm all-in on Rivian now, without a doubt."
Cusick said that he purchased a Tesla Model 3 about two years ago and quickly put about 70,000 miles on it.
"I loved her. I came from a gas car, went to electric — oh my gosh," he said. "No gears, just instant torque. I couldn't say enough good things."
But as someone who loves the outdoors and often goes off-roading in the Appalachian mountains from his home in Asheville, Cusick decided to make the switch in June to a Rivian R1T.
He said he considered several options, including the Tesla Cybertruck and the Chevy Silverado EV, but they were either unavailable at the time or were out of his price range. Cusick said he paid around $87,000 for his 2023 Rivian R1T.
He added that he liked how the Rivian is a midsize truck that can drive down some of the narrower trails and that the air suspension offers about two feet of ground clearance.
At the time, hurricane resistance was not on Cusick's radar.
Cusick, who manages a drone operations company, said he moved from St. Augustine, Florida, two years ago partly for work and partly for Asheville's proximity to the mountainous landscape. Plus, he said he figured he'd be safer from natural disasters if he moved about 400 miles inland.
But at the end of September, Hurricane Helene made landfall and worked its way up to Asheville — a town of about 95,000 people that was experiencing an influx of Gen Zers and young residents like Cusick.
Cusick said that by September 26, Asheville experienced a few days of rain and a "little bit of flooding," but everything was operating as usual. He decided to go out for a night of drinking downtown, leaving his Rivian parked on Tunnel Road next to the Swannanoa River.
That night, his friend drove him home. By the next morning, Hurricane Helene flooded the entire city of Asheville, temporarily knocking out cellphone service. Gov. Roy Cooper later stated that at least six dozen people were killed in Buncombe County, where Asheville is located, according to The Associated Press.
"Where I live was completely flooded," Cusick said. "I couldn't even get out if I wanted to, let alone call somebody to take me back to my vehicle."
Cusick said that it wasn't until September 28 that the floodwaters started to recede, and he managed to find cellphone service.
When his friend drove him back to Tunnel Road, where his Rivian was parked, Cusick realized his car was missing.
"It was not where I parked and I started to freak out," he said. "I was like, 'Oh it's gone. It's gone. It's literally gone.'"
EVs like the Rivian are equipped with trackers that allow drivers to find the location of their vehicles. Cusick said that Rivian's app kept saying that his car was where he left it.
That's when Cusick and his friend noticed what looked almost like a "lump of mud" sitting underneath an overpass, anywhere from 50 to 150 feet away from where the Rivian was originally parked. Silt and mud from the Swannanoa River, Cusick said, had engulfed his truck.
Relief briefly washed over Cusick, but he said he immediately assumed his car was totaled.
"There's no way in hell I'm going to be able to get into this thing and boot it right up," he recalled thinking.
But when Cusick walked up to the vehicle, Rivian's door handle, which sits flush into the door panel much like a Tesla, popped out. Inside, the vehicle was "completely dry," Cusick said.
He was able to get inside and start his truck.
"I probably have more questions than anyone," Cusick said. "I wasn't there for any of this. All I know is where I found the vehicle."
A spokesperson for Rivian didn't respond to a request for comment from Business Insider. A Rivian spokesperson told Inside EVs, which earlier reported on Cusick's truck, that Rivian battery packs are sealed to provide floodwater protection.
"As part of our extensive battery testing, we also run salt spray tests to prove that our corrosion mitigations through the life of our packs are robust. Once again, our isolation monitoring features in our electrical and electronic systems provide adequate detection," the spokesperson told Inside EVs.
While Cusick was thankful that his truck was still operational, the Asheville resident said that scenes of the devastation that he witnessed in his city inspired him to volunteer.
Cusick came across a distribution center that was set up by Crisis Response International, a Virginia-based crisis response nonprofit, and asked how he could help.
"They said they needed a generator," Cusick recalled. "And I was like 'Hey, I got one. They're built into my car.'"
Cusick said his generator helped power a food truck that was providing hot meals to local residents. He said it also helped power a chainsaw he would use to clear roads.
On September 29, Cusick said a man interviewed him near downtown Asheville about his truck. By the beginning of October, Cusick's experience went viral. Rivian soon reached out to Cusick, the Asheville resident said.
The nearest Rivian service center is almost four hours away from Cusick, in Atlanta. Cusick said Rivian delivered a loaner to him on Monday in Asheville, allowing him to keep the truck while his vehicle is undergoing an inspection and possible repairs.
Cusick said that the experience has made him a loyal Rivian customer. "I think that speaks volumes about the character of the leadership over at Rivian," he said. "They took the words out of my mouth. I couldn't even speak."