The 2005 Volkswagen Beetle has little to no space under the hood to work. Getting to the battery and removing it is quite a task if you've never done it before. Since you can save money changing the battery yourself, it's worth the extra effort needed to remove battery from your 2005 Beetle and replace it with a new one.
Pop the hood and use the prop rod to hold it in place so that it doesn't fall on you while working.
Locate the battery by looking directly under the hood, facing the car. The battery is in the front on the right side, under the hood.
Loosen the negative battery clamps first (fender side/black) using the 10mm socket and turning counterclockwise. This will allow you to work the clamps side to side on the terminal until they come loose.
Add the extension to the socket wrench so that you can reach the next few screws.
Remove the two small screws near the bottom of the battery: the long screw near the power steering reservoir and the short one that holds the jacket around the battery. Work around the battery in right-to-left order until you find them all. The easiest way to remove the screws is to loosen them all the way and then pull them out with the telescoping magnet. It's very difficult to fit your hands down there to grab them.
Unsnap the plastic shield from the battery by grabbing it near the snaps, and lifting up on the corners. This will reveal one final 13mm bolt. Remove that bolt.
Lift the battery up on its left side. This won't allow you to remove the battery, but it will get you to about a 45-degree angle so that you can slide your right hand under it. Wiggle the right side while holding the left side up to remove the battery. This is very tough on the hands because it's a tight-fitting battery.
Remove the battery cover, and place it over the new battery.
Insert the new battery back in place by angling it just like the old one you removed. Start with the right side down and the left end up at a 45-degree angle. Wiggle it a bit until it drops in place. Ensure that the posts are toward the driver's seat of the car and not toward the front.
Work in reverse order to reinstall all of the screws and bolts that you removed when taking out the old battery. For the spots that are difficult to reach with your hands, hold the screws in place with the telescoping magnet and screw them in with the ratchet in the other hand.
Replace the battery clamps by wiggling them back onto the posts from which they came. Do the positive clamp and post first (engine side/red) and then the negative. Retighten the 10mm screws with the ratchet. Ensure that the clamps form a tight connection with the terminals.
