Highway 1 along the coast is a great drive. We have driven parts of it many times and enjoyed 95% of it. North of San Francisco the road is terrible until Fort Bragg. Drove one time from San Diego back home along the Highway to British Columbia. Remember that bridge as being scenic but could not remember the name.
Plan to drive the coast next year down to Ventura and then inland to Palm Springs and Death Valley, trouble is there are too many things to see