The latch on your glove box holds the glove box and its contents in place. If the latch breaks, you cannot keep the glove box properly locked. Repairing the glove box latch on your Volkswagen Beetle takes about 30 minutes. You must glue the glove box halves back together, though, so that takes a little extra time.
Open the glove box of your Beetle. Insert the head of a small flat head screwdriver at the meeting place where the glove box cover connects with the inside liner of the glove box. Wiggle the screwdriver tip until you place the head into the inner part of the glove box door.
Move your screwdriver tip in all directions on the inside of the glove box. You will hear cracking as the glue separates inside, which is necessary for the repair.
Draw the tip of your screwdriver back and forth along the seam between the two glove box sections to separate the sections and make an open seam along this line. Separate the pieces only wide enough to fit your hand inside to do the repair.
Look at the backside of the latch that is located inside this area. Locate a plastic cover over this area. Depending on the year of the Beetle, this area will either be secured with small screws or plastic tabs. Use the screwdriver to remove the screws or to release the tabs so you can access the latch.
Pull out the old latch through the back. Position a new latch in its place. Secure the plastic backing in place.
Put a thin strip of strong glue along the perimeter of the glove box where you separated it. Use two to three clamps to hold the two pieces together. Allow the glue to dry for 12 to 24 hours before removing the clamps.
