80 on the 405 this must be a story from the 60's
The 405 is not a freeway. It's usually a slow moving parking lot.
I recall driving about 100 miles on a The 15 from Paris Valley to San Diego in a line of traffic doing 80-85 all the way. (And honestly, I don't feel comfortable at that speed.) This was back during the nation wide 55 limit. Later I was talking to one of the CA Highway Patrol and asked him what you had to do to get a speeding ticket out there. He said as long as you really are keeping up with traffic, don't weave from lane to lane trying to pass at those speeds, maintain a safe distance, and don't have a dead body plastered on your front bumper, they weren't going to stop you.
If this guy was in the passing lane at 85, then he wasn't just "keeping up".