Volkswagen may become the world’s top selling automaker by the end of 2011.

VW, already the third largest carmaker, could vault ahead of rivals Toyota and General Motors by the end of 2011, said analysts told the Financial Times.

This would place, for the first time in many years, a European company at the top of the world’s car league table.

By the end of 2011, Volkswagen will have sold 7.8m vehicles for a 10.5% market share, followed by GM with sales of 7.2%, JD Power told the paper.