How do I replace the battery? (2006 2.5L)

[tawmrawff]

Ok, my 2006 just went out of warranty. So naturally, things are starting to happen. I went to AutoZone and had the battery checked, and they said "bad battery." I was not going to have the zonie who looked all of 12, take a screw driver and half a pair of pliers to my car, so I am asking you guys. What is all that on top of the battery? do I need special magic to get this thing out? do I remove the fender, hood, left tire, flower vase, ect. to get this thing out?

HELP!

[Stl5152733]

This should help you out. How To: Replace battery

How many miles on your beetle? We have 49,218 just under the 50K mile warranty and our battery died yesterday

[hadda61beetle]

Just out of curiosity Stl5152733...could your battery drain be due to the subs and amps that you have in your bug? I have a 1999 Ford F-150 4x4 with 182,000 miles on it and it's only on its second battery. My "Henry" does not qualify as it is only a 2007 and has only 17k on it. It "only" gets driven in the "nice" months. Rest of the time it remains under its blanket in the garage.

Jerry

[Stl5152733]

Originally Posted by hadda61beetle

Just out of curiosity Stl5152733...could your battery drain be due to the subs and amps that you have in your bug? I have a 1999 Ford F-150 4x4 with 182,000 miles on it and it's only on its second battery. My "Henry" does not qualify as it is only a 2007 and has only 17k on it. It "only" gets driven in the "nice" months. Rest of the time it remains under its blanket in the garage.

Jerry

No amps and subs were removed about 1 year ago It also at the time had a capacitor to help from draining the battery and over working the alterntor

[tawmrawff]

my car just turned 33,000 miles. it was from November 2005, which is why it is out of warranty now. the link posted for how to replace the battery, I am confused, does the terminal "switchboard" on top of the battery just fold over?

[2005Beetle]

I have a 2.0 but I imagine it's the same and when my car wouldn't start after work I moved those fuses out of the way by sliding the whole group at once towards the back. There are four little tongue and groove-like slots that connect together.

[boogety boogety]

I am confused, does the terminal "switchboard" on top of the battery just fold over?

Probably too late for you, after a couple of weeks you've probably figured it out... but for future reference:

Grab the "box" on top of the battery with both hands, one on each side of the box. Just push the box straight back with both thumbs, and it will disengage from the tabs. Some force may be involved... you won't break it. Install is the reverse. It's easy and makes sense when you do it.

[woody95124]

Do you need to ..or should u connect a 9 volt battery to car...via cigireete lighter or just connect to battery posts...???
I heard its a good idea to keep car from "flipping out" after u connect battery...Any thoughts???

[simonsi]

Originally Posted by woody95124

Do you need to ..or should u connect a 9 volt battery to car...via cigireete lighter or just connect to battery posts...???
I heard its a good idea to keep car from "flipping out" after u connect battery...Any thoughts???

Bad, bad, bad idea.

The Beetle is 12V, ONLY connect 12V batteries to it unless via a special DC-DC converter.

What are you trying to achieve?

[woody95124]

I was trying to keep settings on motor...I heard the car will run like crap because settings on computer get messed up....I read in a popular mechanics magazine tht u should do this......thnx

[2005Beetle]

The battery in the cigarette lighter will keep the settings in memory, like the radio stations. But the engine should be okay because the car's computer has presets that it will run on fine and when it gets warmed up will start getting new readings from all the sensors.

[turbokid]

Originally Posted by tawmrawff

Ok, my 2006 just went out of warranty. So naturally, things are starting to happen. I went to AutoZone and had the battery checked, and they said "bad battery." I was not going to have the zonie who looked all of 12, take a screw driver and half a pair of pliers to my car, so I am asking you guys. What is all that on top of the battery? do I need special magic to get this thing out? do I remove the fender, hood, left tire, flower vase, ect. to get this thing out?

HELP!

I know this thread is a bit old, but the information given is misguided. Please if you don't know, don't respond. A 2006 is TOTALLY different and takes around an hour or longer to remove and replace a battery. I recently replaced mine and took pictures so as people will quit pointing to "Marvins Dad" for the answer. I'm going to be posting a thread in the Tech area in the near future. Anyone reading this needing to replace on a 2006+ let me know and I'll try to help you out.

FYI "marvins dad" Beetle is a 2001 0r around about. That intruct may be good thru 2005. 2006+ different animal..
-=robert=-

[turbokid]

Originally Posted by woody95124

I was trying to keep settings on motor...I heard the car will run like crap because settings on computer get messed up....I read in a popular mechanics magazine tht u should do this......thnx

On a 2006 it didn't mess anything up when I removed the battery. In fact all my radio presets where still there. AS for the car running like crap. That maybe true on older versions. my 06 runs fine. Just wanted to clear the air for future references. -=robert=-

[boogety boogety]

The only way changing a '06 battery would take me an hour is if I stopped for 45 minutes and had half a six-pack in the meantime... yes, it's different from the <'06s, but not that different. It's just common sense stuff. Getting the top fusebox off the battery is the biggie... and no step for a stepper...

[turbokid]

Originally Posted by boogety boogety

The only way changing a '06 battery would take me an hour is if I stopped for 45 minutes and had half a six-pack in the meantime... yes, it's different from the <'06s, but not that different. It's just common sense stuff. Getting the top fusebox off the battery is the biggie... and no step for a stepper...

By all mean explain how this simple proceedure can be done in about fifteen minutes. Inquiring minds would like to know.

[dedwards0323]

Originally Posted by tawmrawff

Ok, my 2006 just went out of warranty. So naturally, things are starting to happen. I went to AutoZone and had the battery checked, and they said "bad battery." I was not going to have the zonie who looked all of 12, take a screw driver and half a pair of pliers to my car, so I am asking you guys. What is all that on top of the battery? do I need special magic to get this thing out? do I remove the fender, hood, left tire, flower vase, ect. to get this thing out?

HELP!

For future reference, attached is a copy of the battery change procedure from the service manual. Really straight foward when you follow the "road map" of "how to".

[boogety boogety]

By all mean explain how this simple proceedure can be done in about fifteen minutes. Inquiring minds would like to know.

The removal of the battery in an '06 and up can be accomplished in (easily) ten-fifteen minutes. Since you seem baffled by this realistic estimate, perhaps you're not ready to work on your own car... but that's OK! Not everyone can master the art of turning a wrench, something I'm sure your special-ed teacher told you many years ago. That's why God made mechanics and service people, and you should avail yourself of their expertise. Happy motoring!

[dedwards0323]

Originally Posted by boogety boogety

Probably too late for you, after a couple of weeks you've probably figured it out... but for future reference:

Grab the "box" on top of the battery with both hands, one on each side of the box. Just push the box straight back with both thumbs, and it will disengage from the tabs. Some force may be involved... you won't break it. Install is the reverse. It's easy and makes sense when you do it.

Per the service procedure I listed in an earlier thread, removing the fuse box is simple. There is a locking tab that needs to be slightly depressed (see PDF file). Once you do this, the fuse box will release easily and you can place it off to the side.

I didn't take any extraordinary precautions to save CPU settings. Replaced the battery, hooked the cables back up and the car started and ran fine. No issues whatsoever.

I would add you need to take extra care when removing the battery holddown bolt located at the bottom front of the battery tray. It's in a tight spot and can easily be dropped when removing or installing. Unfortunately, this happened to me when I was removing the bolt and it took some time for me to locate the bolt when I was putting new battery in. Lots of spots for holddown bolt to lodge itself if it's dropped.

It really is straightforward, but I consider myself extremely competent when it comes to perfoming car service work. I've been doing it for years on all my vehicles. And changing the battery in my 06 NBC took me a bit more than 15 minutes (probably 90 minutes) because I put everything back like original factory setup. Now that I've done it once, maybe a little over an hour now. (Note: You can add another 90 minutes for extra time it took to locate the holddown bolt I dropped!)

Skill sets vary between all of us when it comes to performing service work. Some will do the task in short order. Some will take longer. And when you don't have to do this task but once every 4-5 years, remembering all the steps and tricks is probably not going to happen in all of us.

[turbokid]

Originally Posted by boogety boogety

The removal of the battery in an '06 and up can be accomplished in (easily) ten-fifteen minutes. Since you seem baffled by this realistic estimate, perhaps you're not ready to work on your own car... but that's OK! Not everyone can master the art of turning a wrench, something I'm sure your special-ed teacher told you many years ago. That's why God made mechanics and service people, and you should avail yourself of their expertise. Happy motoring!

A real smart-ass comeback Boogerty Boogerty... For those that's never changed a battery it could be an overwelming task. 1st. You don't know me. You don't know what I'm capable or not capable of doing. Dissing the mentally challenged shows your immaturity (dominant child).. Without a tech manual one has to determine what tools they need. They don't know socket sized, till they try. After taking mine out once, yes I could probably half-ass do it in fifteen minutes. I clean things as I go. So your half-ass smart-ass answer is well noted by those needing help. They know who NOT to ask.

I quit arguing with IGNORNANT people as yourself. Why? They will beat you with experience everytime

[chard306]

Excellent, this thread just saved me $50.00
It took me longer to go buy the battery and extension then it did to remove and replace the battery. I waited 2 months because it seemed so time consuming.
I have been carrying an old battery and jumper cables in the trunk to jump start.
Thank you.