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Do most people run a grounding strap to their engine? Was there originally one installed?

If so, what is the most convenient/effective location for one?

Don't know about late cars but early ones had the ground strap from the clutch housing bolt nearest the lower starter mount bolt to the inner wing. Their should be a captive nut opposite where it bolts to the clutch housing.
Do you need a ground strap? Yes! your throttle and choke cable will thank you!! they get very hot when used as the main ground when starting......................

You can never have enough grounding straps

always run 2 good ones on my minis

Pad

I am with minimans on this one, somewhere between the clutch housing
and the inner wing, although I've never had the captive nut...

I had a car once that had the strap paralleled across the engine
steady tie-bar on the heater tap end. I am sure it was the "auto",
and it made me cringe - first opportunity, I changed it.
Surely it should be close to the starter, anyway?

What ever you do, be sure to clean off all paint and/or rust, and
maybe consider using a brass manifold nut to hold it on if you use
a bolt.

Just remember to undo it before you try to crane the engine out,
particularly if you have it somewhere where it is not clearly visible...

Most/all leads just have the terminals crimped on - I ALWAYS get
the soldering iron out and finish the job properly. They can, and do
oxidise and I once had a battery explode in the boot because of this...
There ended up being a bad connection between the braiding and
the terminal: A tiny spark and an accumulation of hydrogen = BOOM!

Thanks guys. I don't remember a captive nut either, but I have some bulk cable and terminals left over from when I ran the new battery cables, so I can make up a connection to the inner fender.

I stand corrected, there IS a captive nut, right near the bottom of the RH I net fender. I made up a heavy ground strap tonight with soldered connections....should work well.

Thanks again.

The engine earth is essential. Without it the circuit will be completed through whatever earth connection there is. This is usually the throttle cable and/or choke cable. The starter motor can draw 300 amps for a short time and this will cause these thin wires to glow red. Make sure your engine earth is in good condition.