Amp Power Step Question

[[email protected]]

Hi Everyone,

 

I had amp power steps installed last week on my AT4. They are a little loud when they retract, there is a knock i hear once i close my door and they close. Is that normal? Should they be pretty quiet?

 

Thanks in advance. 

[Duramax3oh]

24 minutes ago, [email protected] said:

Hi Everyone,

 

I had amp power steps installed last week on my AT4. They are a little loud when they retract, there is a knock i hear once i close my door and they close. Is that normal? Should they be pretty quiet?

 

Thanks in advance. 

Sorry I can’t help but I’m looking forward to some info on this too. 
 

Mine aren’t overly loud but there is a decent “knock” sound when they go back up. When moving forward from a stop I can hear a little clunking sound but can’t figure out where from. The steps are on there solid. It’s only at low speed and not like they’re rattling around constantly. 

[OnTheReel]

I put mine on almost a year ago. They are definitely not silent. The thump when they go up is normal, even the factory tri-mode steps make that sound.

If installed incorrectly I’ve heard there’s a cab mount on the frame they may hit. Mine aren’t even close to anything but you can crawl under and double check that. If they aren’t banging into anything, run ‘em.

[falk1rk]

Mine are not silent either but way worth it. I will never have a truck without them. The only thing I hear is the knock when they fully retract

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[[email protected]]

Thanks everyone. There is no rattle when driving and they feel solid when stepping in. I just wanted to be sure the knock noise was normal and based on the responses it seems that is the case. I love them so far! 

[88junior]

I've had mine on for a year now and they have been loud from day one. I checked to make sure they weren't hitting anything or binding up somehow after they were installed. I found that they were hitting a bracket for a body mount at the rear of the cab just as they came to a stop. I ground a bit off the corner and painted it over to prevent rust and they clear it now. However, they're still loud. I guess its just the mechanism and I have grown used to it. 

[Max Z71]

Both sides on mine hit the frame brace so I cut a little off of the corner of the brace and no more touching. They do clunk when going up but the ones on my Tacoma make the same sound. Before cutting a piece off there was a mechanical sound when driving slowly over bumps. That sound has disappeared since trimming the mount and no further contact between steps and brace.  Love the Amp Steps and love the no-step look when raised,

[Duramax3oh]

Ok so I spent some time under the truck today and figured out what my problem was. 
 

To recap: I was unsatisfied with two things. (1) was the loud clunk the steps made when folding back up under the truck and (2) there seemed to be another clunking sound on occasion when driving around. Usually at low speeds from a stopped position. Sounded like a baseball was loose in the bed for a couple seconds. 
 

The rear bracket of my steps are installed further back than others or what the instructions say. While I prefer this look and the symmetry to the front bracket, it creates an issue when hitting part of the frame underneath when it contracts back up. Not the Step hitting the rocker panel under the door like I first suspected but it’s the step bracket. 
 

My quick & easy short term fix was to use a section of Foam/Sponge Window Seal I had in the garage (~$5 from Lowe’s). 
 

see pics below, hope this can help some of you. Or caution others as they install theirs. 
 

 

Edited April 11, 2020 by Duramax3oh

[Duramax3oh]

Oh to add to my post above. I stuck about a 1.5” cut off of the sponge window seal onto the bracket of the power step. You can see the indention where it hits 
 

this really really dampens down the sound. It’s actually quite pleasant now

 

 

[OnTheReel]

1 hour ago, Duramax3oh said:

Oh to add to my post above. I stuck about a 1.5” cut off of the sponge window seal onto the bracket of the power step. You can see the indention where it hits 
 

this really really dampens down the sound. It’s actually quite pleasant now

 

 

Good idea, might have to try that.

 

As far as bracket position, are you one of the unlucky people that didn’t get a set of holes a little forward of the rear-most ones? My brackets clear that body mount by 6” or so.
 

 

[Max Z71]

I did not get the second set of holes either so mine are positioned on the last set. I do like them there as I also like the symmetry of the front to back positioning. That bracket is the one I cut a triangle piece off of and now have a nice gap between the rotating bracket and the steel support piece. Mine still made noise once in a while and when checking, my steps were barely touching the truck in the rear. I loosen the bolts on the motor bracket and added a 1/8 inch shim between the bracket and the truck, so now nothing touches and nice and quiet.

[tdowell65]

How hard are these to install yourself.   Are they just plug and play?

 

[OnTheReel]

3 hours ago, tdowell65 said:

How hard are these to install yourself.   Are they just plug and play?

 

It’s about a 3-4 hour job all in. Mounting the steps took no time, spent way more time routing and running the harness. It’s DIY doable and plug and play though. Nothing hard about it.