Richard Petty Motorsports will explore "all options" as to what type of car manufacturer the NASCAR organization will partner with in the future, the team's namesake said Tuesday.

Officials at RPM have squashed speculative reports that a move from Dodge to Toyota is imminent, saying no change of manufacturer will be made this season. But Petty didn't rule out some kind of change coming next year, after the organization's current contract with Dodge has expired.

“

We're talking to Dodge, we're talking to anybody that wants to talk.

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RICHARD PETTY

"I can't really tell you, because I don't know," Petty said on a teleconference with reporters. "I do know that we're looking at all options. We've been with Dodge all these years, and we don't really know where they're at. We're talking to Dodge, we're talking to anybody that wants to talk. Right now, we're in the process of trying to come up with what we think is going to be best for Richard Petty Motorsports, not only in the near future, but in the future way on out there."

Dodge's parent company, Chrysler, recently emerged from bankruptcy after forming an alliance with the Italian carmaker Fiat. Dodge pulled its support of Craftsman Truck Series teams after this year, and Petty has said that support to his Sprint Cup program was on hold as the manufacturer reorganized. The team also recently laid off nine employees and reduced salaries after Chrysler's bankruptcy filing.

RPM has been Dodge's flagship NASCAR organization since former team owner Ray Evernham started the program in 2001. Petty Enterprises fielded Dodges until it was acquired by the former Gillett Evernham Motorsports team last year, and Richard Petty drove a Plymouth -- a forerunner of today's Dodge brand -- for much of his racing career.

RPM driver Kasey Kahne, winner of last week's road-race event in Sonoma, said he doesn't expect any changes.

"I've heard a lot of that stuff, too. You hear it and you wonder," Kahne said. "But I've been hearing it for over a year now, and I haven't seen any changes. As long as our Dodge engines are getting better and are strong, I'm happy with them. That R06 [engine] is a good package. We need to keep working on it and building it. I don't see us changing from Dodge. But a lot of things happen over there."

• Sound Off: Petty addresses the manufacturer topic