It feels a litte silly having to ask such a question, but I'm a bit
puzzled.  I have an '87 non-GL camper with 2 batteries.  I've had no
problem removing and installing batteries in this vanagon.

However, I now have an'87 GL camper, and the battery box looks a bit
different.  I've turned the passenger seat around, removed the battery box
cover, disconnected the terminals, and unbolted what appears to be a
battery stabilizing piece of metal.

Now, the battery has about 1/2" of room to slide to any side (that's
total, not 1/2" on each side).  The problem is that I have virtually no
room to put my fingers on the sides in order to pull it out.  The battery
has a couple of flat (against the battery) strips which I suppose are the
handles, but there'd be no way to use them without some sort of special
tool.

I think that's enough description.  So, how can I get this battery out?
I'm assuming that the battery is the correct size, but I haven't measured
it.  It came with the vanagon when purchased.

Meanwhile, I'm checking it because it has become too low to start.
Perhaps the fridge cooling fan wore it down, or it may just be time to
replace it.

Thanks for the help,
David