has anyone gone this route goin' in either direction? if so, is it worth the extra time? take into consideration that i drive up there a lot using the boring @ss 5 fwy. i thought i'd try something new this time. i do not care about the extra time. my concerns are, are there lots of stops that offers fuel? how are the roads, CHP etc.? i hear the scenery is nice.

 

I've driven between SF & LA numerous times. The gas tends to be a little more, but definitely more abundant than that of the 5. Get gas at Salinas, and then it'll hold you off until at least ventura to get gas again. Are you doing the drive by yourself? You can detour to see hearst castle if you're bringing a girl along or something, because there are some really nice beaches, waters beautiful. On the 101, its no spectacular, its pretty commericialized as you pass through more cities like SLO, SB, and what not, I've personally not seen CHP before on 101, I've driven on it maybe 7-8 times or something. Its definitely more eventful than the 5, but after a couple of times, its like, why bother. The 5 is considerably faster for me for where I am going(tacks an extra 1.5 hours on to my drive to go on 101).

 

God...I drove 5 in a '76 280Z that I just picked up...was fearing running out of gas the whole way...surprisingly and luckily the car made it with no problems.....I'd had taken 101 if I new the 5 had so few gas stations....

Sadly the Z died about 4 months after I got it....

 

It's about a 60 minute difference depending on traffic and how fast you drive. The 101 def is more scenic though. My best time down the 5 is 4 1/2 hours. I don't think I've ever done the 101 in under 6 hours. :-/

 

careful, my cousin went to SLO for school and warned me about a city that is TICKET friendly, if you know what i mean... on 101.

i did this a few years ago coming from vegas to woodland hills then up 101 to fremont. in january.

was foggy at the beach. was temped.

i drove this on my toyota truck so i was more paranoid about gas, but the situation is way better that I-5. plus you dont have the feeling you are in the middle of no where...

plan out ahead. i have GPS points for gas and stuff if you want. essentially, i broke trip down to gas stops at pismo beach and salinas IIRC.

 

Never ever speed in or near King City. I think the CHP has a office there or something. Almost got a ticket there once. Was going 100+ and had a gut feeling that I was pushing my luck so I slowed down to the 55 limit then. Good thing cause at the next overpass, there were like 5 cruisers and a Mustang 5.0 hiding, waiting for me to storm by.

 

+1

King city is a well known speed trap area. I've only driven up 101 once from LA, and it's a better drive, but IMHO not worth the extra time to me.

I've made it from San Ramon to Pomona on one tank of gas Only took 5 hours too.

 

My last trip down to SoCal on that Highway was pretty uneventful. I left Sebastopol @ 4 a.m., and was stopping for breakfast in Camarillo right at 11 a.m.

I make sure to be doing the speed limit around King City, but otherwise, I'm keeping around a 75mph pace. I did get my best gas mileage on that trip, though. Cruise control is your friend. I got over 400 miles from full to the empty light just coming on.

 

in the XT???

Damn

 

No, that was in the SVX. Hell would freeze over before we get that kind of mileage in the XT...

 

Does getting a 400 mile tank in a rex count? I've done that... averaged 27mpg...

 

I don't think it's worth the extra time myself esp. coming from Vallejo.

 

i've driven down from sj to la on 101 once, but i stopped by in slo to have dinner w/ some buddies.

now that i've driven that way, i think i would only take 101 if i'm visiting friends somewhere along the way.

the drive gets scenic between slo and la, but it's not too exciting between sj and slo. i think it's worth a trip if you've never gone that way, and there are some good eats in slo and pismo beach.

and another +1 for not speeding near king city.

 

Just came back from L.A. yesterday, took 5 down, very fast (just 5.5 hrs when I left saturday morning) and actually kinda fun... but then I took 101 all the way back - I agree with everyone else, not worth it, the scenery is ok and the long sweeping turns get boring after a while - took me about 7 hrs

 

Screw that. The 101 takes too long and too many traps. The 5 is the only way to go. Screw the scenery. Just drive fast and watch out 4 the pigs.