I believe it was a sales gimmick, The circular ball vent for the ac was called an "Astro vent" it was used to sell cars in the early 70s
Yeah Voler, my other nickname is "Super Genius" ! LOL! ..nah, not really, I ve been working on these cars since 1972.. you learn alot over that many years... of course I ve forgotten about half of it!too cool. have never heard that befor. Fish are you some kind of GM super tech or just a truly smart fella?
OK fish you made me do home work. this is what i found. rember it comes from the internet so accuracy may be off but it fits with what fish put out.
Astro Ventilation System: The Astro-Ventilation System is designed to provide ventilation air throughout a normally closed automotive ****pit/interior. Normally this air would have been supplied by the front door vent windows, as was the style in older cars. However since the innovation of the one-piece front door window, another source was developed. Upper level ventilation is provided by air inlets on either side of the cowl plenum. A distributor duct extends from the inlet to the instrument panel where air is directed by spherical outlets. These outlets can be rotated to provide soft diffused air of spot cooling. Air shut-off doors are located in the ducts and are operated by push pull knobs located beside the outlets. Air is vented though a vacuum operated door. This door is located behind the rear window and is open when the temperature control is on "off"; at any other position, the door will be closed.
Side vent windows were eliminated in favor of a new fresh-air "Astro Ventilation" system The 1968 Camaro had the new "Astro Ventilation," which means that it did not have those small windows located on the front passenger and driver's windows
1975 was the last year for the Astro Ventilation system