Not to piss in your guys' cornflakes, but.........the fastest "official" time my truck put down was 16.28 at S-series Nationals, the best 2.2 Time I saw was 18.2 (and he beat me in the bracket race finals..props MikeSki for consistency) There were other NA 4.3's turning mid 15's in the sweltering heat as well. Anytime I lined up with a 2.2, even with a sh*tty launch, I always had him by the 1/8th. If I hooked good, I never saw him after that. 2 Seconds is a LOT to make up in the 1/4.
Realize guys, my first truck was a 2.2, and I had a Volant, TB Spacer, Exhaust. I know what its like. I've been on both sides, and the 4.3 side is a very tough one to beat.
Bolt-ons will do almost nothing (Otto has a dyno pull showing 99 RWHP). Stock for a 4.3 is around 145-150. You're looking at making up around ~50hp at the wheel. Don't forget about torque! You're about 100ft/lbs shy there and the only way make that up is Forced Induction or Nitrous.
Gearing is NOT the equalizer. Gearing is used to match up your powerband, not makeup for a HP defecit. 4.3's have a lower powerband, so their gearing is higher (I had 3.42's, good compromise in low end/top end). The NV-3500 has a super low first gear, lower then your NV-1500's. Thats also why the 5-speed 4.3 has 3.08's. 3:73's would work for drag racing only. Going much lower with stock trannies, the 4.3's will run out of breath and peak out too soon.
Soooooooooo, unless you bump the compression to about 10:1 and spin it up to 8500 RPMS(thats what honda does), you're going to be hard pressed to get an NA 2.2 to run with a stock 4.3. The only way it can run like a 4.3 is to breath like a 4.3, and that means moving an extra 2.1L worth of oxygen/fuel through the cylinders. Best bet...Turbo!