How do you remove the rear fenders on a 2001 vw beetle do you have to drop the gas tank?

No the gas tank has nothing to do with it ..first thing is that the two rear fenders and rear bumper cover are bolted together and must be removed as a unit. First thing remove the inner fenders on both of the rear tires then look up and remove the T30 torq bolts and 10mm nuts on bottom the brake light housings must be removed from inside of the trunk there are 2 covers in the corners pop them out and ther will be a plastic knob remove taking care not to drop them then pop out lights with a small flat tip screwdriver unplug lights then take loose the gas door screw and remove clip holding the latch then pull out latch taking care to not break it. then remove all the screws on the outside under the rear deck lid T30 torq .gently pull on fenders and pull off the rear fender/bumper cover assembly taking care to not pull out oo far then take off 8mm nuts from heat shield on left backup lamp and unplug lights ..there u go the all u have to do is unblot the fenders and ur good to go