I promise I have searched and searched but can't get timings except from google maps.

We are visiting from UK and want to go from San Francisco to LA and back in 4 days in a convertible.
Is it possible to drive from San Francisco to San Luis Obispo in one day on highway 1 or should we go to SLO on 101 and back on 1?
At the moment we have
SF to SLO - night at Petit Soleil
SLO to LA - Universal Studios and Warner Brothers (2 nights) - no change as partner wants to go to both
LA to SF - do we need a night stop?

Thanks in advance.

It will take a whole day to drive from San Francisco to LA (LA not SLO) on the coast highway 1. I've done it, it's fine . So it will be easy to go San Francisco to SLO in a day. SLO to LA is published at 4 hours. LA to San Francisco, fastest (most boring) way US 5, I do in 6 hours-others do in 5. Don't forget, in this backward country, we drive on the right! You don't need a night stop, unless you want to enjoy the ride and make some stops.

As for the convertable "it never rains in California" (at least in the summer anyway).

What I'd do is take 101 to SLO, then after the 2 nights in LA, take Highway 1 back. I'd also spend the night along the way (coming back), just to break up the drive. We usually stay in Cambria, and enjoy a leisurely drive up the coast. You can stop in the Big Sur area for lunch or wait until you get to Carmel/Monterey. It is a wonderful drive.

My preference is to drive north along Highway 1, as there are some pretty scary drops on this twisty road - and being from the UK, the fact we drive on the other side of the road might be a bit disconcerting for you. I'm thinking you would be more comfortable on an inside lane.

That being said, Highway 1 is spectacular. The weather may be fine or foggy, but you'll love the convertible regardless. And - we did have rain last week, but summer rain is a most unusual occurrence!

If you want to be on the ocean side of the road while driving US1, you'll want to do that drive from north to south. Its a bit easier to pull over and look at the view when you don't have to cross over the traffic lanes either with the car or on foot.

Just for forms sake, it is CA-1, US-101, and I-5 US1 is on the east coast. But anyway, your itinerary is workable, though quite a bit of driving, and not a lot of time for stops along the way. Try to avoid getting caught in weekend traffic (Fri afternoon away from SF/LA, Sun night returns, worse on holiday weekends). The I5 route for return might be mildly interesting to UK visitors (for the first hour or so), just because the terrain is so different.

I'm with curmudgeon on this one.

From SF to SLO is about a four to five hour drive on 101; however, if you were to take CA-1, it could take you the entire day. I'd suggest an early start from SF, if there is no fog along the coast (you didn't say what time of year you will be driving) and just go straight down Highway 1 in SF. It's called 19th Avenue and runs north-south through town. This will put you right along the ocean for the duration of the trip to LA.

You'll probably want to stop off in Monterey for the Aquarium; have lunch in charming Carmel or further along the coast. One of the best stops is Point Lobos State Reserve. It's very beautiful out there when the sun is shining. Point Lobos is about two miles out of Carmel and the exit is on the right hand side.

All along Big Sur on Highway 1 there will be pull-outs for you to stop and take pictures or just to look at the view.

Try to get to the town of Cambria before nightfall as it will be very difficult to drive Big Sur in the dark. After Cambria, the road is straighter and easier to drive.

However, it wouldn't be difficult to plan to arrive SLO while there is still plenty of light. There are some excellent restaurants in SLO, but for an experience, try the Madonna Inn.

SLO to LA is another 5 hours and again I would suggest getting an early start. LA traffic is always bad. Best times for travel along the freeways is before 6:30am; then between 10am to 2pm and then after 8pm. Plan to be doing something somewhere - like on a tour or at dinner - during peak traffic hours and you'll be OK.

On the return road, take Interstate 5 for a straight shot back to SF.

Have a fine trip and welcome to California!

Thank you all very much - that's certainly given me information to work with. We fly to San Francisco on 25th July (so not long now), I've booked a walking tour and Alcatraz and I think we'll do the trip the following Monday, avoiding the weekend, and maybe take an extra night on the way back.
I am really looking forward to it, I've never been to California and can't wait to drive CA-1, eat some great food and try some wine.
Thanks again. I'll let you know how we get on.

Very belated update to thank you for your advice.
We drove south down CA-1 on a beautiful clear morning and had to stop several times to admire the fantastic scenery. We had lunch at Nepenthe - I had the biggest portabello mushroom I'd ever had and carried on to San Luis Obispo. This is the most amazing drive I've ever done - however I didn't wear enough sunscreen being unused to sun and convertibles.
We arrived in time for wine at Le Petit Soleil (and stayed in the Chocolat room) and had dinner at the Big Sky restaurant. All great.
Next morning we drove on to LA where we spent an entertaining day and a half.
We drove back along I5, which while it's not as pretty as CA-1 is interesting for us because there is nothing like it in the UK..!
We stopped for lunch at the Harris Ranch - amazing steak and (for me) great wine.
San Francisco exceeded all our expectations. Everyone was so friendly, we only had to pause and look confused for one minute and somebody stopped to offer help. We had an apartment in Nob Hill which was a great area for a base.
A bus and tram pass was useful as it is sooo hilly and taxis are not as plentiful as we'd like.
The food was consistently good, the wine and beer too!
I want to go back.

If you can, I'd change your return flight and leave from LA. You pick up a day that way. From Carmel to Hearst Castle is 90 miles down route #1. In July you will probably have morning fog..which will burn off at around noon. So you might like to start later in the day in order to see the views. I'd skip Hearst Castle, since its European in origin anyway..and rather a mish-mosh (sp?) of styles. I'd certainly try to visit the various California Missions on your way South. They are all different. San Juan Batiste, Carmel, SLO, Santa Barbara. That's a real slice of Calif. histor.

Everton just posted that they completed their trip.

Omg, I was about to pull a Kleroux until I read the part about you leaving on July 25th and it being "not long now", so looked at the posting date and realized ah, started back in July, then down to your great trip report -- thanks! Can you tell us a little more about what you did in L.A., and what you liked/didn't like so us natives can give better advice?

Thanks again for the report!