Yes, those early semaphore 403's didn't have a good reputation in the used trade.
It's always interesting and valuable to get early Peugeot documentation that pops up in odd places.
I have a 19 page Peugeot book supplied by the Peugeot After Sales Department to someone at Sochaux. It is dated January 1950 and provides the "caracteristiques 203, 203 L and 203 U." It has the detailed specifications of the cars, paint, upholstery, equipment of the different models, diagrams and useful things such as two pages of photos showing how two men in dustcoats can correctly fold the roof of a decouvrable.
I also have a copy of the Peugeot Repair Times Schedule Renault supplied to agency workshops in the late 1960's. It includes 403 and 404. Always interesting to see the various times and compare your own performance. Times seem to make allowance for a fag or two. Four hours for a head gasket, 6 hours for a clutch plus an extra 90 minutes on a 403U, 3.5 hours for a major tune up, 19 hours for a complete re-wire. A complete engine overhaul is 27 hours.