I don't know what to suggest for your situation. I'm originally from Minnesota and went through some pretty rough winters with mine. The driver side step made it through 2 winters before the motor went. My passenger side made it through 3 winters.
They are pretty "cool" and everyone thinks they look nice.
I don't think anyone makes a mudflap/ splash guard that fits the front wheel well with these steps and they do get pretty caked with crap in the winter from the tires.
The cost my dealer in minneapolis quoted me for repair was initially around $700 per step. Last month I went in to get them fixed and was quoted over $2000 because they wanted to replace the hinges too. I decided to do the repair myself using a friends shop and lift.
That said, I can see why they wanted to replace the hinges and charge me the amount they did. The job to replace the motors is a HUGE PITA! If the boards are stuck in the up position you have to remove the motor cover and manually spin the motor to lower the step, then remove the front hinge from the board (the motor is only connected to the front hinge). The hardest part, and i'm sure the reason they wanted to replace the hings completely (the hing cost is something crazy like $500 from the dealer) is that the motor shaft gets pretty seized up in the hinge. Luckly for me we were able to heat up the hinge with a torch and use an air hammer to remove the bad motor (but be careful, the hinges are aluminum and will melt).
I'd say get them as long as you are alright with the fact that you may have to replace the motors after a few winters. But paying the dealer to fix it will easily cost more than boards from the factory.
