Accord/Civic (probably others) overheating problems

I've noticed a few old posts where a number of people experienced the
same problems I had with overheating in a 92 Accord.

In my case the rad and thermostat were replaced and the car kept on
overheating. To make a long story short I found the problem was in the
positioning of the thermostat. Honda's cooling system is quite
different than north american systems.

There's a small hole on the thermostat which has to be lined up with
the thermoswitch so it can operate properly. As soon as I did this my
overheating problems were fixed.

Does anyone know if the newer Hondas still have the same type of
cooling systems? This would seem to be a very common problem to
backyard and non-Honda mechanics.

 

It has nothing to do with the thermoswitch.

It isn't a problem for anyone who uses OEM thermostats, or who knows how
his cooling system works.

 

but the thermostat is keyed [or at least, the thermostat/gasket assembly
is keyed], so shadetree would have to be not paying much attention.
failure to align leads to air locks, hence your overheating issue. the
thermoswitch doesn't have anything to do with this operation.