The term hatchback conjures up many images. But my tester for the week — the Audi A7 — makes you rethink everything about a hatchback.

Long, dominating grille, fading roofline, elegant, luxurious and sexy — those are the images of THIS hatchback.

This five-door sedan stretches 195.6 inches in length with a 114.7 inch wheelbase. The A7 is long, and even drives a little bit long. But, after you get past the large, aggressive grille that Audi is known for, you see a fading roofline that makes the A7 look smaller than other luxury sedans of the same size.

And that’s part of the charm of the A7 — it is deceptive in many ways.

My tester was the 3.0 TFSI quattro which brings with it a 3.0-liter, 310-horsepower supercharged V6 engine with direct injection. Combined with Audi’s Dynamic Shift Program and Tiptronic 8-speed automatic transmission, you have a sedan that is finely tuned and ready to drive in city conditions or on the highway. The quattro all-wheel drive system grips the car to the road.

Thanks to its sexy low profile, the A7 has responsive steering, which aided by the quattro system’s enhanced torque vectoring, makes cornering exhilirating. It is quite nimble for a vehicle of its length.

Inside, there is nothing deceptive about the luxury. For years, Audi has been known for luxury, and it certainly delivers that in the A7.

Luxurious wood-grain veneers accessorize the interior, as does brushed aluminum trim work. And of course, leather dominates the rest of the interior including the dashboard, steering wheel and heated seats.

The A7 has three available models (Premium, Premium Plus and Prestige). My tester was the Prestige model, which brings even more luxury with it such as 4-zone climate controls (giving even rear passengers control over their preferred temperature), 20-inch all-season tires and the innovation package, which includes navigation with MMI touch and the Bang & Olufsen Advanced Sound System.

The MMI touch, which stands for Multi-Media Interface, includes a Google Earth-based navigation system, and a touch screen activated system where the driver can simply write (with a fingertip) the letters of the address or other commands that the MMI controls. I used this system and found it very intuitive and easy to use.

The Bang & Olufsen sound system was a show off. Speakers rose out of the corners of the dashboard and threw sound throughout the car, which has been acoustically designed for maximum sound quality.

Rear passengers enjoy ample legroom, due to the length of the A7, but will want for more headroom thanks to its fading roofline. With rear bucket seats, the A7 is only rated for four passengers.

Lift the rear hatch to find 24.5 cubic feet of space. The trunk opening is narrow but long. There is a height-adjustable power-lift system that opens and closes with the touch of a button. 60/40 split rear seats expand the cargo area further, making the A7 quite resourceful.

Because of the Tiptronic transmission, the A7 has an adequate fuel efficiency rating of 18 city/28 highway. In a week’s worth of heavy-footed driving, I averaged about 23 MPG. Like most luxury vehicles, premium fuel is recommended for the A7.

Base price for the A7 is $59,250. With the top-of-the-line model and the added packages, my tester came in at a hefty price of $80,130, so you can easily get carried away with luxurious upgrades with this vehicle, although many of them are worth the price tag.

As you take in the sound system, the luxurious amenities and the supercharged engine, you grow to appreciate the Audi A7 as a different kind of hatchback.

Jimmy Dinsmore is the Wheels editor at the Dayton Daily News and may be reached at (937) 225-2115. Follow him on Twitter @wheelseditor