Tapered brake pads?

[Slimy]

I've just had a quick look at my front brakes on my Tolly (V5). The pads are tapered towards the outside edge, so only the inner edge of the pad is in contact with the disc. I did think it was just someone being too cheap to replace pads after swapping the discs, but the other side is exactly the same. So I'm pretty sure its not just abnormal wear.

So is this correct, do I have to wait until the pads are worn down until I get full braking effort? Or should I be looking at swapping the discs and pads at the earliest opportunity? I've always been of the opinion that the flat side of the disc and the flat side of the pad should contact in a flat kind of way?

Oh, and what size disc should I be getting for the V5, 170BHP?

 

[DPJ]

You mean as the pads wear, more area is in contact with the discs?

That's normal for these pads.

 

[Slimy]

Wow, that is a surprise! Thanks for the confirmation though, I went from here to pricing up some EBC replacements!

I wonder what the theory is behind that then? I was under the impression that spreading the force over a large area allows the brakes to work more efficiently. I've not seen this kind of setup before.