Australia's fastest police car revealed

If you see a giant, high-riding, German SUV in your rear vision mirror with lights flashing, best pull over because you're being pursued by 'Guardian', Australia's most expensive and fastest patrol car ever.

The Mercedes-AMG GLE 63 Coupe S is a $189,990 vehicle, and is faster than any Ford Falcon or Holden Commodore highway patrol car. This car is a 5.5-litre twin-turbo V8 belting out 430kW and a whopping 760Nm, allowing the AWD monster to reach 100km/h in just 4.2 seconds.

The irony is that in most situations, Victoria Police's newest and most potent patrol vehicle is not allowed to pursue speeding motorists.

In 2015, the Victorian Police force introduced new pursuit guidelines that stipulate unless there's a risk to public safety or a crime has been committed resulting in serious injury, officers cannot initiate a chase.

Indeed, Victoria Police is spruiking the overpowered SUV as a way to promote in-car safety features, not pursuit capability.

"Police have a responsibility to do more than just catch unsafe drivers and we can do this by promoting safer vehicles and encouraging business to play its part," said Victoria Police Assistant Commissioner Doug Fryer.

"We're not saying that everyone needs to rush out and buy the latest and greatest but we need people to prioritise safety over leather seats and shiny wheels," he said, claiming that serious injury and death could be reduced by one third "overnight" if all motorists drove the safest cars they could afford.

For the record, the GLE 63 AMG does have shiny wheels and leather seats.

The Guardian name refers to the vehicle's ability to pro-actively sense a potential collision and prepare occupants for a high-impact crash.

"Your car should be a guardian for your safety and the safety of your family much like police are a guardian for everyone in the community," said Fryer, who says his ultimate aim is to reach zero deaths on Victorian roads.

"Reducing the number of lives needlessly lost on our roads requires a whole-of-community effort," AC Fryer said.

The Mercedes-AMG GLE 63 Coupe S is an operational highway patrol car says the Victoria Police, and is on loan from Mercedes-Benz Australia for 12 months, meaning it won't cost taxpayers the full $200,000.

Police forces across Australia are currently in the process of evaluating new patrol cars as the Ford Falcon and Holden Commodore models are soon to be axed, although it remains to be seen if a fleet of German luxury cars will be employed in future.

The Guardian vehicle was revealed today (March 16) at the 2016 Formula One Australian Grand Prix and is on display to the public for the duration of the event.