do i need a valve cover ground wire?

[Humphrizzle]

care to explain the reasoning behind why the wire should be so short?

[speedminded]

care to explain the reasoning behind why the wire should be so short?

The alternator creates a lot of electrical energy. It's wired to the starter which is wired to the engine and battery. Your entire power train is charged with current and it will find the shortest distance to a ground, if it's not the wire that is intended to be the ground then it will find it somewhere else. As I mentioned before, if that energy is not grounded properly then it may travel up the engine harness burning up the ECU and killing sensors on the way...or it can even travel through the drive train destroying bearings as the current arcs across them.

If the ground cable is too long then the coolant to the radiator may be the shortest distance to a ground. Current in the coolant will turn it to an acid essentially making the radiator a giant battery. The coolant will then eat holes in aluminum, both the engine and the radiator itself...