A '94 Escort that we bought for my daughters had this, so evidently Ford has been doing it for some time. Alas, after 3 daughters and 145,000 carefree miles (breakdowns, there were many sleepless hours), the Escort is no longer in the family. But sure lovin my '05 Lariat Screw

 

Yup, commonly called "chip guard" and often mistaken for a case of orange peel from hell. It's there to prevent chips and does a heck of a job.