The Surge 1 is a nice game, except for the endless grinding. Fighting through the same areas countless times just to get some more money and parts for upgrades.
Is The Surge 2 as grindy as the first game?

It's not as bad as The Surge 1, since you can downgrade parts. For example, if you need an MK2 piece but only have MK3, you can downgrade it and use it.

But you're still going to be grinding a bit to do upgrades, especially if you want to be using multiple sets of armor and weapons. You can also upgrade implants.