Someone recently made the claim that subjecting clipless pedals to the rigors of commuting would make them harder to unclip as time went by.

I don't think this is true and it's never happened to me despite that I even ride all winter, but from looking at pics it looks like the spring is actually exposed to the elements, so I'm curious -

Has anyone found their "mountain", 2 hole clipless pedals became harder to unclip or you couldn't clip out apparently because of age or because they got dirty?

Situations I'm trying to avoid with my question -
1. "Road", 3 hole cleats
2. Not being able to unclip because of being unfamiliar with the pedals, as well as never quite being able to clip/out comfortably. I'm specifically asking about wear, tear, and/or age causing it to happen

Responses like "I've been riding x years through snow and dirt and it's never happened" would also be welcome.

I'd appreciate it if you could mention your pedal system - Shimano spd's, Time Atac, Crank Brothers, etc.

Thanks.

EDIT: I forgot to mention - let's assume that once you install them you never clean or lube them after that, like commuters such as myself would do.