Together with Erik Langer (guitar), Frank Tirado-Rosales (percussion, also a former member of ...But Alive) and Marcus' brother Lars Wiebusch (keyboard), they formed Kettcar to experiment with a different sound and address more personal issues in their lyrics.

When they failed to find a label for the release of their first album, Du und wieviel von deinen Freunden ("You and how many of your friends", a quote from the 1985 movie The Breakfast Club), Wiebusch and Bustorff banded together with Tomte frontman Thees Uhlmann and formed the independent music label Grand Hotel van Cleef.

The album title is a play on a German proverb, English equivalent of which would be "A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush".

In November 2009, Kettcar continued this program and played six concerts with the orchestra Neue Philharmonie Frankfurt supporting them.

In August 2017, the band released their first single in five years, "Sommer '89 (Er schnitt Löcher in den Zaun)".