When you, or others, race in an autocross do you bring the car up to temp before doing the race? In road racing we sit on the grid mildly revving our engines until they reach temp prior to going out on the track. I would imagine that you would want the engine temp up prior to getting on the throttle. Engines tend to wear prematurely when the
oil is not warm and throttle response may improve as well in a warm engine.
Half the fun of racing is sorting things out between sessions and between races. It is tough racing a cobra on a wet track that has been sealed. When I was at Mid Ohio you could tell the difference on the wet track between the areas that were sealed and the sections that were not. A lot more grip where there is no sealer or paint on a wet track. At least in road racing we have a little more room to change the line, you do not get that much room in autocross.
Jim