Responding to all questions now, crazy but I do need some 
. Itās an f150 xlt Triton v8 2002 w 183k on it. My mechanic forced it on me 4 years ago when it had 98K and he decided my '97 F250 w 420k was overdue for transmission problems. Which it still hasnāt had BTW. My mechanic is the big brother I always needed as we are both displaced Chicagoans in So Cal because we no longer believe in winter.
The Grapevine is along Interstate 5 South of Bakersfield and North of Los Angeles
When I worked in the area, I always used CA-1 and US-101 to drive between LA and Lompoc. I never had the experience of driving I-5 north of LA. Iām not from LA, BTW, I just worked on several projects there for a number of years.