So I was driving to Home Depot the other day and on the highway I smelled something, but didn't think about it. Got to my off-ramp and a big puff of smoke came from the engine bay. I looked to see the gauge going into the top of the red. I pulled over and found my upper radiator hose had popped off the radiator. I was able to fit it back on, get a garden hose to fill up, then a replacement clamp at Home Depot was put on.

So far, all seems pretty much okay. The car takes a bit to warm up and doesn't seem to get as hot, making me think the thermostat might have been damaged. It's all water still as I haven't mixed in coolant yet. I've had a couple of drives and not noticed anything else.

What do you think and what might I want to check or replace to feel confident about it again?

Well, if you're concerned about the thermostat I'd change it. Get your coolant mixture where it needs to be, and call it good. Maybe replace the radiator hose that popped off. Do you think the clamp failed?

Put a stat in it, the question should not even be asked if the car has over 75K on it and never done yet. It would be utterly stupid to lose a perfectly good car over a $10 stat yet the junkyards are full of cars done like that.

Hose clamps pretty much don't fail in and of themselves, I haven't seen one do it in 45+ years of working on cars. The only issue is that Chinese ones will strip as they use crap metal, you find it out instantly if you are tightening them enough on the first go.

When I got the car earlier this year, it didn't warm up the heater, so I have replaced the stat. But I kinda wondered why if failed in the first place and if an overheat could have caused it and perhaps even now I have done it again. Can a short overheat brake these things?

The hoses are spongy and the old coat hanger clamp had stripped it's rectangle piece's threads. I'm going to get new hoses, clamps, and don't mind tossing on another stat for peace of mind.

It's been running fine and does heat up, but doesn't seem as hot as it was before and I like a good heater.

Yeah make sure everything is secured. You don't want to lose a perfectly good car over something like that.