As we all know, disconnection form a server during a race (specialy a long race) is a very frustrating thing. We ever won't be able to avoid this issue and it will happen from time to time to all of us. So lets make a use of it to add a bit realism to the game.
As we also know, Scawen doesn't want to add to LFS random engine, transmission, brake failures etc. because he doesn't want to make luck decide of a race results instead to driver skills and car setups.

To the point:
My idea is to make, in case of disconnection (time out), an animation, to the disconnected player car, of smoking engine, or oil leak and give information that he has an engine failure for example. engine blow - xxx player (disconnected). Transsmision problem would be the closest to the true, but engine blows would be more spectacular . The car would slow down and stop. After a short while the car could disapear, or in later LFS versions it could be pushed of the track by the marshals. The disconnected player won't be able to see this, but to all other racers it could be much more fun then xxx player disconnected... The disconnected player would be able to see this in a replay - recorded by someone else. Also in DNF reasons there would be an info about it.

As i said, disconnections are mostly the reasons of DNF in leagues. It's something that will never be eliminated from an online game. Why don't to make a use of it so everyone could be happy. People who wants random failures in LFS, and Scawen and all people who don't want it.

What do u think?

Well, it would certainly be creative.

But if time would be invested in dealing with this matter I'd prefer the "resume session" idea to be honest and let the engine damage modelling (whenever it gets implemented) handle actual engine failures (which will be mostly due to the driver's skills in destroying engines).

surely LFS cant always know if someone has hit exit or if they actually got disconnected for some reason??
so if i am correct everytime someone leaves a server an animation would play of their car blowing up or something... that would get pretty annoying.

I think a UFO should emerge from the heaven, a spot of light should come down and lift the car up, 5 mins later everyone in the room will receive a postcard from Mars in their e-mail account, saying life is good and those LFS aliens actually are aliens afterall.

I think the "timed out" is not the same disconnection, as a normal game exit.
About the normal engine failures like overheating i'm also for normal temp simulation etc. But what i meant is a really random failure, like Michael Schummacher at Suzuka this year. He didnt overheat his engine and it wasn't his fault

Nice idea but there is one big fault in it. When the player would get disconnected the car wouldn't have a driver and it would be dangerous to spill and spread fluinds around the track, not to mention the car would just stand there which would be a hazzard in tracks like Southcity. Real racers will steer off to safe place, I doubt AI could do that....not at the moment atleast.

Or,
what about, player disconnects
(improved) AI goes on.
When the player that disconnected joins, he can go on...
OR if something is disabled,
that ANY new connected player takes over the car...

+1 btw. (POST-S2/3)

Quote from Blackout :

Nice idea but there is one big fault in it. When the player would get disconnected the car wouldn't have a driver and it would be dangerous

Maybe for a short while the AI could take over the steer and drive slowly off track.

I like this as an idea. I too would preffer to resume the session, but this would happily suffice instead. The AI would need to know safe locations to drive too.

good idea