Presse releases

Gelnhausen, March 6, 2025 – We, the company CARextern, are delighted to have been recognized for our commitment and achievements on this special evening at the Main-Kinzig-Forum. Under the patronage of the Main-Kinzig district, we were honored together with other outstanding entrepreneurs.

This honor confirms our continuous work and our commitment to the regional economy. The festive evening provided a valuable opportunity to talk to personalities from politics and business and to develop joint perspectives for the future.

This recognition motivates us to continue to combine innovation, sustainability and social responsibility in our work. We would like to thank everyone involved for making this inspiring evening possible. We look forward with confidence to the challenges ahead and look forward to continuing to actively contribute to the positive development of the Main-Kinzig district.

We are very pleased to welcome David Staniforth as a new member of the CARextern team. He is a recognized fleet expert in the global automotive sector with over 30 years of experience with major automotive manufacturers, leasing service providers, management consultants and aftermarket specialists. Learn more here.

CARextern Automotive Services GmbH has moved into a new and large office directly at the spa gardens in Bad Orb. The premises now offer enough space for six employees, the fleet and mobility specialist announced. The move was celebrated in mid-October with around 100 invited guests, including District Administrator Thorsten Stolz and First City Councilor Michael Kertel.

“CAR Extern Automotive Services GmbH, based in Bad Orb, has now been in operation for almost ten years. Founder Christiane Engel and her husband Matthias Engel advise both corporations and medium-sized companies on all aspects of fleet management. After the decision of the Federal Constitutional Court on the CO2 phase-out, the market for company vehicles and vans is likely to see massive movement in the coming years. IHK Reaction spoke with the two consultants.”

The consulting company has been added the list of the Federal Office of Economics and Export Control. A free sample of the consulting services of Managing Director Matthias Engel is available on April 15th in the bfp online seminar “Implementing e-mobility in the vehicle fleet”.

Good news for CARextern at the beginning of the year 2021, upon meeting the quality requirements of the Federal Office of Economics and Export Control (BAFA), for the consulting funding of the federal government. Carextern is now listed on the BAFA portal and complies with the quality management system with external audit ISO 9001.

“Strong Partner for your Fleet” “The expert monitoring organization FSP of the TÜV Rheinland Group, CAREXTERN and the FDZ Vehicle Service Center join forces.”

Car Extern has thus received personal reinforcement. After several years, the paths of Christiane Engel, Managing Director Car Extern and Nadja Hohmann, Head of Customer Service, have crossed again. “It’s good to keep in touch. The best prerequisite if you want to expand small, quality companies with high-caliber professionals. In our case, we were able to bring on Ms. Hohmann, who, like us, has gasoline in her blood.” The state-certified business economist joins our small company Car Extern after 13 years of automotive experience in the VW Group. Her focus is on scheduling, controlling and various sales processes. Most recently, she held the position as head of disposition in the new and used car area for 4 years. We wish Ms. Hohmann all the best for her start with us and look forward to a working together.

“Interview with Christiane Engel, Matthias Engel (both CarExtern Automotive Services GmbH) and Andreas Nickel (founder of Fleet Academy) about the acquisition of Fleet Academy by CarExtern. […]”

In Good Hands “You always see each other twice in life” – this saying certainly applies to this development: Because Svenja and Andreas Nickel have decided to sell the contents of Fleet Academy GmbH to their long-time companions Christiane and Matthias Engel (Car Extern Automotive Services GmbH). The first division “Training, Education & Continuing Education” has already been transferred as of February 1, 2020. Thus, the circle closes, as all parties involved were colleagues more than 15 years ago, when they worked together for a well-known captive leasing company. Fleet academy has focused very strongly on the training business area and has built up a very established business relationship with the TÜV Rheinland Academy in Cologne and other well-known training providers in Germany over the past years. The range of training courses is constantly being expanded and has numerous innovations in store. Links to these can be found on the Car Extern Automotive Services homepage: www.car-extern.de. Car Extern, in turn, has focused very strongly on the business areas of interim management in the car dealer – car manufacturer and commercial customer segment since its founding in 2012.”

The owners Svenja and Andreas Nickel have sold the contents of the Fleet Academy to Car Extern Automotive Services of Christiane and Matthias Engel. The “Training, Education & Continuing Education” division has already been transferred as of February 1, 2020. Fleet Academy has focused on the Training business segment and has established business relationships with TÜV Rheinland Akademie and other well-known training providers. “[…] With regard to the conditions of the leasing companies, the motto ‘Live and let live’ should still apply, although competitive terms and conditions should be available,” warns Christiane Engel, Managing Director CarExtern Automotive Services GmbH. She knows from experience that a lot can happen during the life of a leased vehicle. “At the end is the vehicle return, where the financial flexibility of the contractual relationship is revealed, as by no means can a framework agreement regulate all process incidents. If the financial flexibility is completely exhausted, neither the manufacturer, importer, leasing company nor the dealer can make a decision in the customer’s interest. Very often, long-term and very good business relationships break down due to expectations that cannot be met,” says the expert. This can be prevented by carefully weighing up all the parameters and making a prudent choice of leasing partner. The lowest rate is not the main criterion.” Learn more here.

You usually see each other twice in life” – this saying certainly applies to this development. Svenja and Andreas Nickel have decided to sell the contents of Fleet Academy GmbH to their long-time companions Christiane and Matthias Engel Car Extern Automotive Services GmbH. The first subdivision “Training, Education & Further Education” has already been transferred as of 01.02.2020. At a later point in time, Car Extern Automotive Services GmbH will then take over the remaining contents of Fleet Academy GmbH as well as flottenlexikon.de – fleet encyclopedia on the Internet. Thus the circle quoted above closes, since all involved were colleagues more than 15 years ago, when they worked together for a well-known captive leasing. fleet academy has focused very strongly on the business field of training and over the last few years has built up a very well-established business relationship with the TÜV Rheinland Academy in Cologne and other well-known training providers in Germany. The range of training courses is constantly being extended and expanded, with numerous innovations in store. You will find the corresponding offers in the navigation above. Car Extern, on the other hand, has focused very strongly since its founding in 2012 on the business areas of interim management in the car trade – car manufacturers and commercial customers segment, as well as associated consulting services as a service offering. Christiane Engel concentrates primarily on the German market, while Matthias Engel accompanies international projects, especially through his work as Global Sales Director for fleetcompetence www.fleetcompetence.com. Thus a very strong practical relevance is guaranteed, which is desired and honored by the participants of the training programs. Svenja and Andreas Nickel are very pleased to hand “their baby” to known and proven hands. This assessment is shared by the contract partners and very much welcomed. “[…] With regard to the conditions of the leasing companies, the motto ‘live and let live’ should still apply, although competitive terms and conditions should be available,” cautions Christiane Engel, Managing Director CarExtern Automotive Services GmbH. She knows from experience that a lot can happen during the life of a leased vehicle. “At the end is the vehicle return, where the financial flexibility of the contractual relationship is revealed, as by no means can a framework agreement regulate all process incidents. If the financial flexibility is completely exhausted, neither the manufacturer, importer, leasing company nor the dealer can make a decision in the customer’s interest. Very often, long-term and very good business relationships break down due to expectations that cannot be met,” says the expert. This can be prevented by carefully weighing up all the parameters and making a prudent choice of leasing partner. The lowest rate is not the main criterion.” Learn more here.

“Zegemo” and “Carextern” will work together in the future. This means that fleets and fleet managers will receive increased support in the areas of consulting, training and fleet studies. The Center for Business Mobility “zegemo” led by Prof. Dr. Roland Vogt and “Carextern” led by Christiane Engel join forces and will cooperate with each other in the future. Thus they offer a comprehensive linkage of scientific and practical know-how. Training and fleet support The aim of the cooperation is to link the respective core competencies. Prof. Roland Vogt (Professor at the Munich University of Applied Sciences for Business Administration, in particular strategic management) is responsible for the scientific analysis of the fleet and mobility market, the associated publications (see fleet studies) as well as consulting and training for fleet managers, leasing and fleet management companies. Christiane Engel has many years of experience in interim management and fleet management for medium-sized customers, training and coaching in the automotive trade for manufacturers and importers. The background of the cooperation is the mutual integration of scientific and practical know-how in order to serve the fleet market in an efficient and future-oriented way.