I'm trying to build w_scan and get the following error when running ./configure:-
checking how to run the C preprocessor... gcc -E
checking for grep that handles long lines and -e... configure: error: no acceptable grep could be found in /usr/sbin:/usr/bin:/sbin:/bin:/usr/xpg4/bin
you could try: opkg update ; opkg install grep to get GNU grep version 2.26 (see https://openwrt.org/packages/pkgdata/grep) which might be sufficient for your problem. Mind you I have not tried that so it might not be enough.
You could also try to contact the BusyBox developers and try to convince them to teach BusyBox grep to handle long lines...
But, opkg is there for a reason, do just installing the full grep is certainly a good solution. Just keep in mind that unless you build your own firmware to flash, any update you will install will not have gnuvgrep installed. Do you will need to install it manually after an update (or after running the Firstboot script, as that reverts the router to the pure firmware, by deleting all data added after flashing).