Personally, even at my best driving capabilities, I was afraid of highway 5, the looming trucks way over speed while tailing, wanting you away even if you were hugely over speed limit. Part of why I would give hours away to do 101, instead, besides it being much more interesting.
My business partner drove it routinely, though (she was a rodeo rider in early days).
This is apropos of the horrific fed ex truck and bus crash.
I figure there are proximate reasons this all happened. Still, I think there is a highway to nowhere thing about highway 5 that makes people blotto.
Me, I haven't taken it very far north of Sacramento; that might be a different scenario.