Popped Upper Radiator Hose 1995 Honda Accord LX 2.2 Auto?

I was on the highway with the car fully warmed up at a steady cruise around 70mph. All of a sudden I smell coolant. I keep driving for about 30 secs, keeping a close eye on the temp gauge. It started to creep up and went above the half way mark. I pulled over immediately and shut the car off. I sat their for about 5 minutes and limped the car into a safer area, keeping an eye on the temp gauge, it never went more than slightly above the half way mark. I pop the hood to find the upper hose looks to have popped. I changed that hose no more than 2-3 years back, it still nice and soft, not brittle or spongy. My question is what would have caused this to occur, just the hose, could it be the radiator cap not releasing pressure ? I had someone else mention that it could be a stuck thermostat but if that was the case wouldn't the car would have been overheating prior to the hose popping ? Which was not the case.



I had someone else say its a headgasket, which would mean in this case than combustion gases are getting into the coolant causing the systems pressure to rise and popping the hose. Which would also point out a possible bad radiator cap, which should release excessive pressure. I have not done a leakdown , cooling system pressure test or the dye test to test for this. There is no oil in the coolant that is left and no coolant in the oil. Also there were no drivability issues for the short time that I drove the car while the coolant was leaking. Is there anyway this could be a headgasket ? What are the other possible problems that caused this ?
Popped Upper Radiator Hose 1995 Honda Accord LX 2.2 Auto?
Could just be a defective hose..You might want to change your cap anyway.It should release coolant into the reservoir if there is too much pressure..
Popped Upper Radiator Hose 1995 Honda Accord LX 2.2 Auto?
Wayne D had a good answer.



It is possible the hose was defective, because although there are fiber layers, it could be there was a badly done transition from one layer or fibers to another, creating a weak spot.



It can't be a bad thermostat or head gasket, because as you said, it was not over heating on the gauge, and the radiator cap should still have released any excess pressure.



But not only is it a good idea to replace the cap anyway, now you also have to replace the thermostat. Even if it was good, once a car over heats, always replace the thermostat. That is because once the wax pellet that operates the thermostat gets too hot, you can never be sure it will open fully again.
A stuck thermostat will not allow the cool coolant to flow into the engine or the hot coolant to flow out

The radiator being rubber expands to the point of bursting.

Head warp-age and a cracked block can happen from this problem as well

Check your water pump to make sure it works properly