Volkswagen is set to overtake Toyota Motors as the global leader in vehicle sales, thanks to a rapid expansion drive in China, the world's biggest auto market.

Toyota meanwhile is curbing growth in order to focus on shoring up quality. The automaker, who has held the top spot for two years, announced a global sales growth of 3.8 percent for the first six months of 2014 to 5.097 million vehicles on July 30, a record first-half result.

Volkswagen is growth faster however and its half-year total could surpass the Japanese automaker, according to Reuters.

Volkswagen sold 4.97 million vehicles from January through June, and increase of 5.9 percent from the same time in 2013. The figure excludes numbers from truck makers Scania and MAN, which will be released on July 31.

HIS Automotive forecast Volkswagen's first-half sales total at 5.07 million vehicles, including the truckmasters, according to Reuters.

Toyota's results exceeded the HIS forecast of 4.83 million. Results have been credited to strong sales in the U.S., China, and Europe.

Even if Toyota is able to keep its crown during the first half, its reign could end before the year is over.

"China is the driving force of the global market, and the degree to which a company is focused on that region is linked to the global sales performance," said Yoshiaki Kawano, a Tokyo-based analyst at IHS Automotive, according to Reuters.

General Motors sold 4.92 vehicles in January-June despite all of their recent issues.

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