Amp wants you to lube the steps with silicon spray. You may need to work it in.

 

Just noticed mine doing that today. We got about 6" of snow here in Oklahoma. Don't forget, these steps are designed to stop if they feel any resistance. I had snow/ice built up bw frame and passenger step. Knocked the snow/ice out and they went up high and tight.

 

I could definitely see the frozen stuff being a issue during the winter in colder areas!

 

My drivers side one started playing up the other week and not fully extending or retracting in the cold weather (approx -10degC and below).
It would eventually work after working it a few times or giving it a helping hand. Thawing it out also worked. I assumed it was just a grease/hinge issue so lubed it up but the problem persisted when it got cold again.
The step and hinges were removed and inspected. The front 'idler' hinge was fine but the motor/gearbox assembly had an issue with the plastic cover over the gearbox - it had distorted at the edges allowing me to see through from one side to the other and also allow water in.
Upon disassembly, the gears were pretty rusty and grease was at a minimum. I dried, cleaned and regreased all the gears before reassembly. I then taped up the joint between the plastic cover and gearbox for a water tight seal.
The step was installed back on the truck and worked fine - but today if has started to show the same symptoms again..... It has been down to about -30degC here.

When I first found and rectified the problem, I emailed AMP asking for advice and if enquiring about a more robust unit for harsh environments. After a couple of emails back and forth, they offered to replace the parts under warranty - without me even mentioning replacements or warranty - the steps are 3.5 years old now and I'd done my own repairs but thankfully took pictures of the issue.
Very impressed with the response and customer service so far - I was holding off on writing a thread about this until I have the replacement parts in hand.

Edit:

Here is a picture of my powered hinge pulled apart. The plastic cover can be seen to the right of the motor. It has a lip at the top and the motor holds it at the bottom but the sides had deflected away from the gearbox. If you're having similar issues it might be worth checking the plastic cover is still tight against the gearbox.

 

yea i live in oklahoma as well, but even after a car wash knocking everything off still not wanting to work.