People fond of the old saying “Its bark is worse than its bite.” will be well advised to rethink that position as refers to the 2010 Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG. Plant your right index finger solidly on the silver disc that activates the engine and a vicious bark is unleashed. This is the car’s way of telling you to make sure you have plenty of room in front of you before you apply full throttle. Capable of getting from here to there in far less time than you could possibly imagine, this Benz has plenty of bite. Mercedes claims a zero to 60 of 4.4 seconds.

These days the engineers at Mercedes are gleefully stuffing the AMG designed and hand-assembled 6.2-liter V8 engine into everything the company builds for the U.S. market. In the all-new E-Class, the V8 is like hot water to wool. The engine makes the car feel much smaller than it is and revels in tempting you into endangering your driver’s license, insurance policy and, if you fail to resist its wiles altogether, possibly even your marriage. Once behind the wheel, you’ll want to just drive and drive and drive.

Now if all of that enthusiastic waxing has led you to believe the car is wild and loose, nothing could be farther from reality. In fact, the E63 AMG is buttoned down really well. Interior accoutrements are nicely finished, well placed and highly intuitive to operate.

And while my time with the car was all too brief, I can say the driver’s seat is absolutely perfect. Hugging you comfortably, but adjustable to accommodate a wide (and narrow) variety of body types, it also features the active bolstering system that stiffens in sympathy with your cornering intensity to provide the exact support you need for the maneuver at hand.

On the appearance front, the newly sculpted lines of the E-Class body lend themselves nicely to AMG-itization. Up front, a discreet air dam incorporates two linear sets of white LED daytime running lights, warning other drivers of the nature of the approaching automobile. Subtle fender flares connected by discreet side skirts frame the massive tires and wheels needed to efficiently transmit the 6.3’s ferocity to the tarmac.

The signature quad tailpipes are nicely squared off, lending them a thoroughly modern and purposeful look as they peek from beneath the lower apron. In sum, it’s all quite angular and very purposeful looking, but at the same time it doesn’t scream, “Hey, look at me, I’m a high-performance car!” If you know your Benzes, when you see it, you’ll know what it is. Yet, the handsome lines draw admiring looks, even from those who don’t know what it is capable of.

And while the look of the car doesn’t really attract undue attention. The sound of the engine on the other hand, well, that’s another story. During my brief time with the E63 AMG, the 518-horsepower V8 struck me as remarkably smooth, particularly free winding and exceptionally glorious in its audibility. Capable of winding to 7200 rpm (truly remarkable for a V8) and placing 465 ft-lbs of torque at your disposal, romping away from traffic is the norm –– even without making an effort to do so.

The seven-speed automatic transmission incorporates paddles behind the steering wheel for manual shifting, running the engine to redline in first gear will make all your cares fall by the wayside. On the move, the Mercedes feels nicely solid underway, giving the impression that triple digit speeds are readily sustainable. Of course, given the unrestrained nature of the highways in the E63’s country of origin, this comes as no surprise.

Another old saying goes, “You only get one chance to make a good first impression.” Coming away from my short time with the 2010 Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG, that one chance was more than sufficient. Thoroughly enamoured, I’m truly looking forward to an opportunity to more fully acquaint myself with this marvelous automobile.

2010 Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG pricing starts at $88,625.