Really, this sounds more like user error. I haven't had a vehicle overheat ever and yet I have driven probably about 300,000 miles in my life all in vehicles that initially had at least 80,000 miles on them when I purchased them. The total mileage on all vehicles I have ever owned is well over a million if not closer to 1.5 million with the average mileage when I sent them off to the scrap yard probably around 250,000 miles. The only strangeness I have ever had with the cooling system was when a temp sensor flaked out and would provide basically random readings that would jump around all over the place, and the time when the thermostat got stuck open on one vehicle.
This sounds more like you didn't take care of your stuff and then it took a shit on you. Sadly that is fairly common amongst most people. Why should they have to change belts, hoses, fluids, spark plugs, filters, the car still runs and there isn't a light on so they think they are good to go. I had a discussion like this with my step father who said he only goes and gets the oil changed on vehicles when the light comes on. The light he was referring to was the red idiot light on the dash telling you your oil pressure has dropped too low either because it cant pump the thick crud or it isn't sucking up enough oil to maintain pressure.