drock02

Just replaced the brake pads at all four corners on my 2004 LS430 with 58k miles. The rotors showed no perceptable wear and do not show any signs of warping, so I did not replace them. The pad replacement was very easy, due in large part to the non-floating caliper design Lexus uses. One thing I noticed with the OEM replacement pads is they are tapered, such that the pad material area that contacts the rotor is less when they are new and increases over time as the pads wear. That is odd, as it seems like braking performance would be less when the pads are new due to decreased pad contact area with the rotor as compared with later in pad life when the pads are worn down and more pad area is exposed to the rotor. I did not notice any reduced braking effectiveness after installing the new pads compared with the old pads which were worn about 80%. Just seemed strange - anybody know why the OEM pads are tapered? I've replaced brakes on many of my vehicles in the past and never noticed the pads being tapered.

I just noticed the same thing with new pads I just bought. Were your pads only tapered on one side of the pad? Did you point the tapered side to the rear or front of the car?