Seeing a Wall Street Journal report saying Chrysler is in the midst of seeking a new bank alliance to provide services for the automaker’s captive finance arm didn’t cause David Kelleher to overreact.

The Chrysler National Dealer Council president told Auto Remarketing he thinks the OEM is simply testing the financial waters and likely Chrysler will keep its relationship with Ally Financial.

“I have to tell you that I’m a little biased,” Kelleher began during a phone conversation Wednesday afternoon. “Ally to me and so many dealers is a part of us. When we were at our lowest moment and there were no other banks that wanted to lend us a branch to row ourselves into the shore with, Ally was there. Part of that was by proxy; they had to be. But really the treatment we got from their executives was beyond what they were required to do, and I’m talking about a large majority of our dealers.

“We weren’t in the best shape after the time we had been through and needed help,” Kelleher continued. “All of the banks that are now related in that article, they turned their back on us. It would make me very, very disappointed to think we would be changing our alliances.”

According to Wall Street Journal sources that are familiar with negotiations, the automaker is looking to find an institution that will help it be more competitive in the U.S. market.

The report recapped that Chrysler surrendered its struggling finance unit in its 2009 bankruptcy and has used Ally as its preferred lender for consumer loans and leasing as well as for dealer floor planning.

With its contract with Ally scheduled to end in 2013, WSJ said Chrysler is talking to several major lenders including Ally and J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., to create a new lender. The newspaper also indicated banks have approached Chrysler in the past year as its sales performance improved.

Last week, Chrysler declared that it turned a profit in 2011 and set aggressive targets for this year’s performance. Auto Remarketing recapped that achievement here.

When Auto Remarketing contacted Chrysler senior vice president of communications Gualberto Ranieri for details about the automaker’s future financing plans, he responded with only, “no comment.”

JPMorgan and Ally also declined to comment to the Wall Street Journal.

However, another person supplying information to the newspaper indicated Chrysler would take an ownership stake but not completely own this lending unit and the banks would provide all financing.

These sources told WSJ that the deal would be similar to an agreement that Fiat — now the majority owner of Chrysler — reached in 2006 with Credit Agricole SA to form Fiat Auto Financial Services.

Back at David Dodge Chrysler Jeep in Glen Mills, Pa., Kelleher is confident the OEM will make the right decision.

“I think we’ll remain aligned with Ally,” Kelleher projected. “The question is — is Chrysler going out to get the most efficient bang for their buck? We have to applaud them for making sure they check the market and make sure they get the best they can for themselves and the dealers.

“I don’t think we can ever forget exactly what Ally did for us. Again, some of it was by demand from the relationship with the government, but some of the other things they did was beyond,” he continued.

“I reached out to Ally on behalf of several dealers who were in trouble and having trouble moving over to Ally,” Kelleher shared. “On each occasion, they sat down with us as individuals and found the good in the situation and helped us. I don’t know that a normal banker would do that.”

Kelleher reinforced his argument for Chrysler sticking with Ally. He mentioned a couple of instances where the automaker worked with another financial institution, and it didn’t result in a situation better than its relationship with Ally. Kelleher pointed to non-prime lending with Santander USA and leasing products with US Bank not gaining significant traction.

“In neither one of those times did those products take hold. Ally emerged with the victory even though they were challenged,” Kelleher insisted.

Despite the report, the Chrysler National Dealer Council president is confident of not only the OEM’s product lineup but its financing relationships to service buyers and dealers.

“As close as you are with somebody, when you’re in business there’s nothing wrong with keeping them honest. I hope that’s the case here and at the end of the day a majority of our business remains with Ally,” Kelleher stressed to Auto Remarketing.

“I want my manufacturer to be as competitive as it can be. But at the end of the day, I hope that remains with Ally. I think that’s where we owe some responsibility and competitively as well,” he continued

“I represent the entire dealer body, and I think the entire dealer body from the weakest dealer to the strongest are better served in whole by Ally and their ability to be flexible with their lending,” Kelleher went on to say.

Response to Chrysler Super Bowl Ad

In other news Wednesday, Chrysler posted a response from Kelleher on its website refuting claims that the automaker’s television ad shown during halftime of the Super Bowl was politically driven. The ad, “Halftime in America,” features Clint Eastwood and images similar to Chrysler’s award-winning spot from last year’s Super Bowl the promoted the Chrysler 200.

“I think surprised is a wonderful word to use,” Kelleher told Auto Remarketing about the backlash Chrysler and its dealers have received. “I’ve told a lot of my clients and neutral people as well that I don’t think anybody who saw that ad — especially the dealers who witnessed it during the preview with (Chrysler chief executive officer Sergio Marchionne) before the Super Bowl — had any inclination at all, not the remotest thought of it being anything than what it was.

“That was part of the reason we’ve been so defensive. As a dealer body, there was a great deal of emotion stirred by the thought of it being anything other than a recollection of what we’ve been through and where we intend to go. That’s how simple it is,” he continued.

“I wonder sometimes if the people in this political climate understand that it’s not always about where they’re at,” Kelleher added. “We’re a resilient breed, us Chrysler guys so we can take it. But we won’t go quietly when we think someone is stepping on us.”

Kelleher shared that up until a month before the Super Bowl, Chrysler executives were still unsure of how to use their Super Bowl airtime. They opted for the two-minute spot like last year as opposed to four 30-second ads or a pair of one-minute promotions.

“I heard it from the horse’s mouth, the executives who were under a great deal of pressure. When you do something as beautiful as the 200 ad was last year and as revolutionary as it was, it goes right on you,” Kelleher indicated.

“I tell you, a third time in a row is going to be a tough one,” he concluded.